It's a crucial match for us, says Hussey

The 34-year-old middle-order batsman said he is looking ahead to Saturday’s game against the Rajasthan Royals, and stressed the need to carry the winning momentum forward.

Hussey, along with compatriot and fast bowler Doug Bollinger, flew into the city late Thursday night after taking part in the Test series for Australia in New Zealand.

Having missed eight matches for the Chennai Super Kings in the ongoing IPL, Hussey, speaking at the pre-match media conference here, said he kept track of his team’s progress though he couldn’t watch the matches due to the time difference.

“Tomorrow is a crucial match for us against Rajasthan Royals. We have to get the momentum going. We have four home matches and have the home advantage. I am looking forward to it.”

“Neither coach nor the captain has spoken to me on this. We should be flexible. There will be chop and change in the playing eleven for matches. The eleven would always be based on the opposition and the ground conditions,” he said deftly side-stepping queries about team composition while hinting that he wasn’t sure of playing Saturday.

Ever the professional, Hussey felt that the Super Kings are very much in the hunt for a semifinal berth, especially since the competition was not only getting hotter, but also closer.

“The race for the four berths is close. Though we have lost five matches, it is not the end of the world for us. We can turn it around. Now (with his and Bollinger’s arrival), coach Stephen (Fleming) and the captain (MS Dhoni) have more options,” he said. 

Having just played in an ODI series followed by two Test matches in New Zealand, Hussey said it wasn’t a big deal adjusting to the T20 format of the IPL.
“Australia have been playing a lot of ODI and Test matches in the recent past and we were able to quickly adjust to these two different formats. It is not a difficult task for us to get focused and make the necessary adjustments for 20-20 games,” he pointed out.
The Rajasthan players had their usual practice at the stadium for two hours in the afternoon.