MS Dhoni makes a big disclosure about his cricket career
Former India and Chennai Super Kings captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has hinted at continuing playing in IPL 2025, saying he wants to enjoy whatever cricket he is playing in his last few years as a player.
In the last IPL season, Dhoni batted at a much lower order after handing over the captaincy to Ruturaj Gaikwad. This led to speculation about his future.
All the franchises in the IPL will have to submit their list of retained players by October 31 before the mega auction. Dhoni is likely to be retained as an uncapped player by CSK this year.
According to a report by ESPNcricinfo on Sunday, a few days ago, in a promotional event held in Goa, Dhoni said,"I want to enjoy whatever cricket I have been able to play in my last few years. I like to enjoy the game like we used to go out at 4 pm as a kid and play, just enjoy the game . When you play the game professionally , sometimes it becomes difficult to enjoy it. There are emotions and commitments attached to everything I do, but I want to enjoy the game for the next few years. ’’
Last week, Chennai Super Kings CEO Kasi Viswanathan also said he expects Dhoni to be part of the team as a player in the upcoming season.
Dhoni batted lower down the order during the 2024 IPL season after undergoing surgery for his left knee in 2023. The former India captain explained that the decision was made mainly to give young Indian players a chance to spend time in the field before the T20 World Cup.
Dhoni said, "My thinking was simple, why do I need to come up the order if other people are doing their job well. If you are specifically talking about last year (season), the T20 World Cup squad was going to be announced soon. So we have to give chances to those people who were in the race for a place in the national team. ’’
He further said, "We (CSK) had players like (Ravindra) Jadeja and Shivam Dube who needed opportunities to prove themselves to get into the Indian team. For me there was nothing in it, no selection and other things. So I am good (playing down the order) and my team was happy with what I was doing. ’’