Dhoni glad to have Bravo back

After Chennai Super Kings were knocked out of the IPL earlier this year, MS Dhoni had highlighted the injury to West Indies allrounder Dwayne Bravo as one of the main reasons for the campaign ending early.

Bravo had been the leading wicket-taker in the 2013 IPL but could play only one game in the 2014 season before being sidelined by a shoulder problem. One of the five players retained by Super Kings ahead of this year's player auction, Bravo is back with squad for the Champions League.

"We missed Dwayne Bravo during the IPL. He got injured," MS Dhoni said. "That really affected the strength, combination and stability of the side. It is good to have him (Bravo) back."

Two days ahead of the start of Super Kings' CLT20 campaign in Hyderabad, Dhoni talked about how little time there was for the squad to prepare for this tournament. "We don't get 10 days before the start of the tournament. It is usually pretty fast. Especially the fact, most of the Indian cricketers, they are part of the ODI squad and they are coming from England, which means [they] will be arriving here late.

"In my case, I just came here (Hyderabad) today. So, you don't get the same amount of time with the team. As I said, it has its own challenge. Still it is good. We get enough time to get together. The two months of IPL, the time, we spend that really helps us. It becomes like a refresher course, where you get together and start getting your acts together."

While the IPL has been a blockbuster hit over the years, attendances and the following of the CLT20 have lagged well behind, but Dhoni defended the tournament. "The idea of Champions League T20 is brilliant. But also, it becomes difficult to indulge the Indian crowds at the same level if you compare to IPL. Because, if two teams from abroad are playing, you won't get the same kind of crowd, may be when two Indian teams are playing, the interest of crowd grows. This is a challenge."