Chennai Super Kings (CSK) batting coach Michael Hussey acknowledged uncertainty about MS Dhoni‘s IPL future but expressed hope that the legendary player would continue for another two years. The 42-year-old Dhoni underwent knee surgery after IPL 2023 and has dealt with a muscle tear this season.
In the off-season, Dhoni handed over the CSK captaincy to Ruturaj Gaikwad, sparking speculation that this might be the veteran wicketkeeper’s final IPL season. When asked about this on ESPN’s Around the Wicket show, Hussey responded:
“Your guess is as good as mine at this stage. He keeps his cards very, very close to his chest. We are hoping he does keep going. From a personal point of view, I hope he keeps going for another couple of years.”
“But we will just have to wait and see. He is the only one who will make that call. And he likes to sort of build the drama a little bit as well. So I wouldn’t expect a decision anytime soon.”
Hussey praised Dhoni for his preparation and remarkable batting this season but cited his knee surgery as the reason for the champion cricketer not batting higher in the order.
“He is still batting so well. He does prepare well – he gets into the camp very early and hits a lot of balls. And He has been in good touch all season really.”
”I guess we just got to try to manage him from the body side of things. He had a knee surgery after the last season. So he has been managing that from the initial stage of the tournament,” said Hussey.
He added:
“I know fans probably want to see him batting a little bit higher in the order, but that [the knee surgery] is why we have had to manage him a little bit and he only comes in at the back end.”
”But there has been no one better in being able to come in and hit the ball so cleanly from ball one than MS. He has been phenomenal.”
MS Dhoni has displayed outstanding power-hitting this season, averaging 68 with a striking rate of 226.66 across 13 matches.
“MS Dhoni wanted to remain here while the new captain assumed leadership”- Michael Hussey
Michael Hussey mentioned that MS Dhoni passed on the captaincy to Ruturaj Gaikwad to ensure he was still part of the team when the new captain assumed leadership, guiding him through the transition.
Gaikwad took over as CSK captain one day before their first match of the IPL 2024 season against the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB).
“MS sort of announced that he was not going to be attending the pre-tournament captains meeting. And we’re like, ‘Oh, no. What’s going on? He said Ruturaj was going to be captain from then on. So it was a little bit of a shock to start with but it has been managed really well.”
“MS wanted to still be here while the new captain took over, to try to help him along the way and sort of mentor him a little bit. So that’s worked really well as well,” said Hussey.
Despite some fluctuations, CSK are well-placed to secure a playoff berth, currently occupying the third position in the table with seven wins from 13 games. They will conclude their league stage with an enticing encounter against RCB on Saturday, May 18th.
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