MS Dhoni leaving Chennai Super Kings (CSK) has opened a can of worms. With the wicketkeeper batter passing the leadership baton to Ruturaj Gaikwad, his place in the starting XI isn’t certain anymore. His fitness concerns won’t help the issue either. Having dealt with a knee injury last season, Dhoni played just 57 balls in the whole 2023 edition.
Although he’s since undergone surgery, his fitness levels are yet to be tested. This leaves a question about his wicketkeeping abilities. Will MS Dhoni maintain the vigor required for being a wicketkeeper in an intense match between CSK and RCB at the MA Chidambaram Stadium?
If not MS Dhoni, then who?
At full strength, CSK has three wicketkeeper options: MS Dhoni, Devon Conway, and Aravelly Avanish Rao. Right now, Conway is out for an unspecified amount of time and isn’t part of their squad for the CSK vs RCB season opener. The southpaw opener will most likely make a return in the second half of the event in late April or early May.
18-year-old Avanish Rao had a poor outing in the Under-19 World Cup 2024 but was still picked up by the franchise. He scored just 84 runs at 16.8 but struck at a 110-strike rate. As for his wicketkeeping, he claimed 5 catches and 2 stumpings in 7 outings. The southpaw seems like a fine future pick, but it might be a bit premature to select him right now.
In the end, it’ll be MS Dhoni who’ll keep the wickets for CSK. One has to keep in mind that, despite a shoddy knee, Dhoni was the man behind the stumps for their winning campaign last year. Playing 16 matches last year, he took 7 catches and 3 stumpings (the joint most).
These numbers may not be his finest, but considering how his fitness was hampered, he still managed to be the 4th-best wicketkeeper in the league. Now, back to his best, one would assume, there’ll be no shortcomings from his side.
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