MS Dhoni may have played his last match for the Chennai Super Kings (CSK). Even a rumour of such a thing happening would send shockwaves through the cricket community, especially diehard CSK and Dhoni fans. The writing has been on the wall for a while now. The moment the wicketkeeper batter retired from international cricket, you knew this day was going to come.
His knee injury in 2023 brought that far-looking future into close proximity, and handing the captaincy to Ruturaj Gaikwad basically sealed the fate. Yet there he was after every game, standing full of vigour as he defied age, injuries, and expectations. Dhoni still stands tall and has the ambition to don the yellow jersey once again but this time things aren’t in his hand.
MS Dhoni’s playing days over?
The legendary captain’s participation in the IPL 2025 season doesn’t depend on his fitness or form but rather on a meeting. In particular, the upcoming tete-a-tete between the BCCI and the IPL franchise owners on July 31.
According to Cricbuzz, Dhoni has talked about his future with the franchise owner, N Srinivasan, and they have come to the conclusion that the former captain’s participation in the upcoming edition of the league will depend upon the number of retentions the franchise would be able to make before the IPL 2025 mega auction.
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Following the conclusion of the meeting in Mumbai, we’ll get to know how many players each franchise can retain. If the number is 5 or more, Dhoni will continue his playing career as CSK’s wicketkeeper. However, if the franchises can only retain 4 or fewer players, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ravindra Jadeja, Matheesha Pathirana, and Shivam Dube will be the ones who’ll get the nod ahead of Dhoni.
One thing is certain: he’ll continue to be the face of CSK. If he doesn’t play in the IPL 2025 season, he’ll be present in the dugout as their mentor. Dhoni and CSK have become synonymous since the league’s inception in 2008, and it doesn’t seem like that partnership will end anytime soon. His role may change, but he’ll always be at the center of the Chennai Super Kings.
