With the deadline for the IPL retentions nearing, Chennai Super Kings are hopeful that MS Dhoni will feature in the next edition. The 44-year-old, who stepped in as captain last season an injury to Ruturaj Gaikwad, hasn’t announced his intentions as yet. But according to the franchise’s CEO Kasi Viswanathan, the door is still very much open for him to continue as a playing member of the squad.
“We are hopeful that he would play. He hasn’t said no so far, so we expect him to play the next season as well,” Viswanathan said on Friday. With the franchises having to formalise their retentions by November 15 ahead of the auction scheduled for later this year, Chennai are set to have a meeting in the coming days with Gaikwad, Dhoni and head coach Stephen Fleming. As reported earlier, the franchise had a four-day trial session a month ago to look at some of the exciting prospects in the domestic circuit.
After finishing at the bottom of the table last season with four wins and 10 defeats, the five-time champions are preparing for a partial overhaul of the squad. With regards to Dhoni, his contribution has been limited, as he has predominantly preferred to come in at the backend of a batting innings, with a couple of overs left.
While there is Urvil Patel as a backup wicketkeeper option, the franchise has been in talks with the Rajasthan Royals over a possible trade for Sanju Samson. While no headway has been made on that front, it is understood that over the next week crucial talks are expected. Apart from Samson, the franchise is also believed to be exploring other options for the wicketkeeper slot, possibly a player who could straightaway fit the XI, irrespective of whether Dhoni plays or not.
Speaking at an event in August, Dhoni had said CSK are more or less sorted on the batting front but conceded that the squad had holes to be plugged. “There were certain holes that we need to plug in. I think our batting order is quite sorted out now. Rutu (Gaikwad) will be coming back. A small auction is coming in December. You know some holes are there, and we will try to plug those in. But again, you have to be at your best at the start of the tournament. You have to get the planning right. You have to use the resources in the best possible manner. Even the fans feel disappointed, but also the fact is the players always feel more disappointed than the fans. So we do talk about the processes. But at the same time here, we do want the result to come to our side. Last year wasn’t there. But looking ahead we will try to sort out most of the things. And we will hopefully be at our best,” Dhoni had said.
Dhoni, who has now seen CSK miss out on playoffs for two straight years, had added that how the squad looked on paper didn’t matter, but the key to returning to their successful days would be to consistently do right things on the field. “The last couple of years have not been good for us. We have not been up to the mark. Whatever the reasons may be. What is important is to see the learnings. It’s not about what you have done in the past 15-16 years. The next year when you turn up again, you have to start from scratch,” Dhoni had said.
With no clarity on whether their trade plans will work out, the reluctance to part ways with Dhoni is not surprising. But there are also questions as to how long he will be able to continue. With R Ashwin retiring, CSK will have an additional Rs 9.75 crore in the auction purse and are set to release few more players with an eye on adding new talents to the squad.
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Although this is only a mini-auction, several franchises are planning to ring in changes to their squads with some of the big money retentions from last year expected to be thrown back into the player pool. Apart from CSK, the likes of Lucknow Super Giants, Rajasthan Royals, Kolkata Knight Riders and Surnisers Hyderabad are expected to make significant changes to their squad.
