The finalists of 2019 and the most successful teams in the history of the Indian T20 League are also the most stable sides in the league. Chennai led by MS Dhoni and Mumbai led by Rohit Sharma have created a solid reputation over the years by retaining a core group of players and building impressive title-winning outfits.

As another auction approaches, we look at the few slots these teams must fill.

Chennai

Team: Ambati Rayudu, KM Asif, Deepak Chahar, Dwayne Bravo, Faf du Plessis, Harbhajan Singh, Imran Tahir, Jagadeesan Narayan, Karn Sharma, Kedar Jadhav, Lungi Ngidi, Mitchell Santner, Monu Singh, MS Dhoni, M Vijay, Ravindra Jadeja, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shane Watson, Shardul Thakur, Suresh Raina

Released players: Chaitanya Bishnoi, David Willey, Dhruv Shorey, Mohit Sharma, Sam Billings, Scott Kuggeleijn

Slots to fill: Five (two overseas)

Cash remaining: Rs 14.60 Crore

Possible strategy: Chennai's major concern will be that they have quite a few old legs in the side. MS Dhoni, Ambati Rayudu, Kedar Jadhav, Shane Watson and a slew of other players are all well past their prime and Chennai will know that.

Creating the next generation of players who fit their game plan will be crucial to Chennai's success this season. Dubbed as "Dad's army" for the age in the team, a few young players would be on Chennai's radar this auction.

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That said, they have usually preferred experience and we might also see them go after a few well recognised players in the T20 circuit. With their limited budget, high profile buys are unlikely. That said they might want to add some flair to the line-up. The strike rates of their top-order now have a questionable look.

Watson 127.56

du Plessis 123.36

Raina 121.97

Rayudu 93.06

Jadhav 95.85

Players who might be on radar: Hashim Amla, Sai Kishore, Colin de Grandhomme, Baba Aparajith, Shimron Hetmyer, Kesrick Williams

Mumbai

Team: Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, Krunal Pandya, Ishan Kishan, Surya Kumar Yadav, Rahul Chahar, Anmolpreet Singh, Jayant Yadav, Aditya Tare, Anukul Roy, Dhawal Kulkarni, Quinton de Kock, Kieron Pollard, Sherfane Rutherford, Lasith Malinga, Mitchell McClenaghan, Trent Boult

Released players: Adam Milne, Alzarri Joseph, Barinder Sran, Ben Cutting, Beuran Hendricks, Evin Lewis, Jason Behrendorff, Pankaj Jaswal, Rasikh Dar, Yuvraj Singh

Slots to fill: Seven (two overseas)

Cash remaining: Rs 13.05 Crore

Possible strategy: Mumbai have the most stable line-up heading into the auction. They have not just identified their best XI but also sorted out their reserve bench strength which means that their auction strategy could be on picking x-factor players who can add some zing to the line-up.

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With a few pacers released, Mumbai brought in Dhawal Kulkarni to the line-up. But releasing Jason Behrendorff and Alzarri Joseph is a sign that they might want to replenish their pace bowling crew.

In Sherfane Rutherford, they have a handy all-rounder, but they might also look to strengthen this area and probably add a spinner or two this auction.

Players who might be on radar: James Neesham, Andile Phehlukwayo, Blair Tickner, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Singh, Varun Chakravarthy

Feature image courtesy: AFP/ Arun Sankar

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ChennaiMumbai Indian T20 League