Chennai Super Kings have started their title defense with a six-wicket win over Royal Challengers Bangalore in IPL 2024. The five-time IPL champions have kickstarted a new era with the legendary MS Dhoni stepping down as their captain a day before the season opener.
Since his retirement from international cricket in August 2020, Dhoni has limited his playing career to IPL now but the age seems to be catching up with the wicketkeeper-batter.
During IPL 2023, Dhoni struggled with a knee issue and played through pain during the entire season as CSK won the title. He though immediately underwent surgery to fix the problem area right after the competition ended.
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Expected to lead CSK in IPL 2024, the franchise made a stunning announcement on the season eve. In a brief statement to the media, CSK said Dhoni has handed over the captaincy to Ruturaj Gaikwad.
Ahead of the season opener between CSK and RCB, the legendary Chris Gayle predicted that the reason why Dhoni has stepped down from the role is because it’s possible that he may not be part of every match during the season.
“He (MS Dhoni) might not play all games. There may be a little break in between for him. that’s why the decision. But MSD will go well, don’t worry about that,” Gayle said on JioCinema.
Gaikwad’s CSK have started life on a winning note as they defeated RCB by six wickets at Chepauk following a star-studded opening ceremony that saw performances from the likes of music director AR Rahman, singer Sonu Nigam and Bollywood actors Akshay Kumar and Tiger Shroff.
A cursory glance at the CSK batting order from their first match of IPL 2024 gives an impression that Dhoni has been demoted further down the batting order. The former CSK skipper was slated to bat at no.8 meaning he may have a limited role with the bat during the season.
Behind the stumps though, Dhoni will have a major role. Besides wicketkeeping duties, he will also be playing the role of the mentor to the young Gaikwad who is in his first season as the full-time captain of a champion side.
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