Ahead of the start of the IPL 2024 season, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) skipper MS Dhoni has teased that fans will see him in a ‘new role’. In what is being described as his ‘last dance’, the legend of the game will look to finish his career with a bang, taking CSK to a record-breaking 6th IPL title.
The former Indian skipper was last seen at the Anant Ambani pre-wedding and hadn’t joined the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) training camp with less than three weeks left before their first match of the season against the Royal Challengers Bangalore on March 22 at their home ground.
What will be MS Dhoni’s new role?
Last season, Dhoni was struggling with his knee, due to which he often demoted himself down the order. He faced just 57 balls in the 2023 edition, which raised some questions about his form and future. However, now that he’s successfully undergone surgery to mend his knee, no one knows what he means by his ‘new role’.
One can assume that the wicketkeeper batter might wish to find a successor. Dhoni had tried to do something similar in the 2022 season as well when Ravindra Jadeja was appointed captain. That move backfired as the southpaw failed to make a mark and resigned.
In what could be his last season, MS Dhoni might want to find someone to take up the captaincy mantle and play as an impact player. This will allow the team to have Dhoni as a master tactician and use him as a lower-order hitter if and when required.
As of now, only one name emerges: who can take over as CSK skipper? That is Ruturaj Gaikwad. The aggressive opener has found success in his last three seasons and is the only other Indian option who is both young and undroppable.