MS Dhoni’s Future with Chennai Super Kings: AB de Villiers Advocates for Continued Leadership
The future of MS Dhoni at Chennai Super Kings (CSK) remains a topic of intense speculation. Renowned cricketer AB de Villiers believes that the World Cup-winning captain should continue to lead the team if he decides to play another IPL season.
Under Dhoni’s leadership, CSK has secured five IPL titles, forging an unparalleled bond between the captain and the team. In a move looking towards the future, Dhoni handed over the captaincy to Ruturaj Gaikwad a day before the IPL 2024 opener. Although Gaikwad performed admirably as both captain and batter, CSK did not make it to the IPL playoffs.
Dhoni’s IPL future is still uncertain, leaving fans and analysts guessing. He retired from international cricket in 2020.
AB de Villiers, while respecting Gaikwad, initially criticized the captaincy change at the beginning of the season and reiterated his stance in a recent media interaction organized by Jio Cinema.
“I will only give you an honest answer if you’re going to report it in the right way. I wouldn’t say I called it a mistake. What I meant was that with MS Dhoni around, playing against him for so many years, it is the most intimidating sight to have him as an opposing captain,” said de Villiers.
“They took away quite a bit of the intimidation factor from CSK by not having him as captain. This is not a critique of Gaikwad’s captaincy. In fact, I think he has a very bright future and led extremely well.
“However, just having MS around, I always felt it was a waste not having him as captain. They tried this before with Jadeja, and it didn’t work. Unfortunately, this year, while they played well in many games, they didn’t qualify for the knockouts. This is definitely not due to Gaikwad’s captaincy. Nonetheless, when MS is present, he should be the captain,” added the South African.
The debate around Dhoni’s future in the IPL continues as fans and cricket enthusiasts eagerly await his decision.
