IPL 2023: Suresh Raina wears CSK jersey as he returns to the cricket field; WATCH

Former India cricketer Suresh Raina on Wednesday uploaded a video on his official Twitter handle where he can be seen taking the field in the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) jersey. Raina's long-term journey with the Tamil Nadu-based franchise ended abruptly this year after he went unsold at the IPL 2022 mega auction. So, when Raina returned to the cricket field wearing a CSK jersey, fans flooded the comment section lauding his loyalty to the team.       

"Guy had so many reasons to delete stuff but still donning the CSK kit instead. Talk about loyalty," one user wrote in the comment section of the post. "Pleeeease Make It Happen Mannn ! Its been year's since Your Fans lived Happy... Please Finish this Journey how your fan's are Wishing it to be. This time Play Cricket for your Fans, who constantly kept supporting you throughout," another individual wrote. 

Raina shared the video with a caption that read, "Nothing beats the feeling of when I'm on the field. Had the best time on the ground!!." The post has garnered more than 1,77,000 views since being shared on Wednesday. 

Raina's career

Raina scored 5528 runs in 205 matches in his IPL career that lasted from 2008 to 2021. He scored one century and 39 half-centuries in the tournament at an average of 32.52 and with a strike rate of 136.72. Raina is currently 5th on the list of leading run-scorers in the league only behind Virat Kohli (6624), Shikhar Dhawan (6244), David Warner (5881), and Rohit Sharma (5879). Raina played his last IPL game against Rajasthan Royals on October 2, 2021. He was dismissed for three runs in the match. 

The left-handed batter announced his retirement from international cricket in August 2020. He played a total of 18 Tests, 226 ODIs, and 78 T20Is for India from 2005 to 2018. Raina scored 768 runs in red-ball cricket, 5615 runs in the 50-over version, and 1605 runs in the shortest format. Raina also picked 13 Test wickets, 36 ODI wickets, and 13 T20I wickets to his name. His last international match was an ODI against England at Leeds on July 17, 2018. 

Image: Twitter/SureshRaina/@internetumpire