(Cricket News) Has MS Dhoni already played his last ever competitive game is a question that is running across everybody’s mind. Chennai Super Kings got knocked out of the IPL, losing their last league game to Royal Challengers Bengaluru and speculations over Dhoni’s retirement has gained fast pace.
Even the top brass of the Chennai Super Kings franchise remains uncertain. “He has not told us anything,” franchise CEO Kasi Viswanathan told on Sunday. “He does not tell us such things anyway. He just decides.”
Whether the fans will ever again see MS Dhoni donning the yellow jersey as a player will remain uncertain until the legend himself decides to make an announcement about his future. With the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) expected to announce a policy for retention soon, Dhoni and the franchise must make a decision by the deadline for announcing retentions. While there is some time before the deadline, it is not much. They may have time till November.
Dhoni did not gave any clarity about his future plans after the game against Royal Challengers Bengaluru on Saturday. He took the first flight home to Ranchi from Bengaluru on Sunday morning. He might have some talks with CSK’s owner N Srinivasan at some point later this year.
There are talks that Dhoni’s availability for the next season will depend upon his fitness. He played the last season with a knee injury, for which he later underwent a surgery. Many CSK members, including head coach Stephen Fleming, said that Dhoni played even this season with the discomfort of constant and nagging pain. Despite this, he played all 14 games and batted in different positions, scoring 161 runs at an average of over 53.
“I think this is it. I do believe that this will be the last time that MS Dhoni will play. Certainly, it won’t be the last time that we see MS Dhoni. I’d be very surprised if he doesn’t mentor or be a part of the CSK family in an official capacity,” Matthew Hayden, a former CSK player who knows the franchise management well, told Star Sports.
“I don’t think this is his last game. I just don’t see him wanting to end on this note. He looked a little frustrated, even when he got out. That’s very unlike MS Dhoni, he just wanted to qualify and finish on a high. But you never know with MS, he might come back next year,” Ambati Rayudu, another CSK player who is close to the franchise management told the same channel.
People are having their own say, but what will happen is only known to one man and that is MS Dhoni himself. IPL retentions will gave the fans clarity about the legends availability.
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