IPL 2019: Shane Watson’s form of late will make his franchise CSK happy

Quetta Gladiators’ batsman Shane Watson ended up as the Man of the Series in Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2019 that concluded on Sunday and his brilliant form this season will certainly make the management of the franchise he plays next – Chennai Super Kings (CSK) – in the Indian Premier League (IPL), starting next Saturday, happy. Watson slammed 430 runs in the series as the Gladiators went on to win their first title in the tournament beating Peshawar Zalmi in the final in Karachi by 8 wickets.

The former Australia all-rounder though did not score much in the final, but he was chosen as the Man of the Match in the first qualifier against the same opponents in Karachi on March 13. On that occasion, the member of two World Cup-winning squads (2007 and 2015), hit 71 in 43 balls besides taking a wicket. Watson scored in the PSL at a strike-rate of almost 144 and belted four half-centuries. He also slammed 22 sixes (the most in the tournament) besides 43 boundaries.

The final was not a very pleasing experience for 37-year-old Watson though as he also found himself getting involved in a brawl with Zalmi’s Imam-ul-Haq. However, the Queenslander will now look forward to making the most of his good form in the upcoming IPL. The Kings play Royal Challengers Bangalore in the first game of the IPL at home this season.

Watson had a rich season for CSK last year

The Aussie, who played his last international match in 2016, is still a force in T20s and hit a century in the final of IPL last year against Sunrisers Hyderabad to guide CSK to their third title. The man scored 555 runs in 15 matches at a strike rate of 155 and it was his second IPL title after winning for the Rajasthan Royals in 2008.

Watson, who has scored over 10,000 international runs besides taking almost 300 wickets, has also been a top performer in the IPL. The experienced campaigner has scored over 3,100 runs in 177 matches in the T20 tournament with four hundreds besides picking up 92 wickets.

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