MS Dhoni confirms CSK captain for IPL 2026, concedes major squad issues

India Today

3 days ago

Legendary Chennai Super Kings cricketer MS Dhoni confirmed the return of Ruturaj Gaikwad as the captain of the franchise in Indian Premier League 2026. Speaking on a private event in Chennai on Saturday, August 2, Dhoni said that CSK opener will return to the side and take over his usual duties.MS Dhoni was forced to take over CSK's captaincy from Gaikwad due to the latter's injury in the IPL 2025. Gaikwad fractured his arm early in the tournament, one that went terribly for the Chennai-based side.advertisementSpeaking at the event, Dhoni admitted to the team's issues from IPL 2025 and said that they were going to strengthen their batting order. The comment perhaps indicates that the franchise will be moving on from Rahul Tripathi and Deepak Hooda, who were woeful last season.
'We are slightly worried about our batting order. But I think our batting order is quite sorted out now. Rutu (Gaikwad) will be coming back. He got injured. But he will be coming back. So, we are quite sorted now,' said Dhoni during a private function in Chennai.'I won't say we (CSK) slacked off (in IPL 2025). But there were certain holes that we needed to plug in. A small auction is coming in December. Some loopholes are there, and we will try to plug those in,' he added.Gaikwad's last competitive outing remains CSK's match against Punjab Kings at Mullanpur on April 8. The Maharashtrian had inked a deal with English county Yorkshire but withdrew from the deal citing personal reasons. However, he has been named in the West Zone squad for the Duleep Trophy, beginning later this month.Dhoni admitted that the Super Kings have been well below-par over the last two seasons, but said it was important for the team to identify those grey areas.'Yes, the last couple of years have not been good for us. We have not been up to the mark. But what is important is for you to see the learnings. Yes, you had a bad season. But what went wrong? And that was the question for us last year also.'We were like, okay, there are some shortcomings. But first we needed to exactly figure out what were the shortcomings and then look at solutions,' he noted.MS Dhoni Thanks Loyal FansDhoni profusely thanked the loyal CSK fans for their wholehearted support during the strife time, and promised to give a better account of themselves in the coming season.'I feel more often than not we have been able to figure out what exactly went wrong. In sports, you know you can have a very good time and at the same time there will be periods when you won't be performing well. In CSK, more often than not, we are on the higher side.advertisement'So, we do talk about the processes. But at the same time we do want the result to come to our side. Last year it (result) wasn't there. But looking ahead, we will try to sort out most of the things and we will hopefully be at our best,' he detailed.The 44-year-old then underlined the strong relationship he has fostered over the years with Chennai and the IPL team based in the city.'It's a very long relationship that we have had and it started much before the start of IPL... 2005 was the time when I made my Test debut which happened to be in Chennai. So, it started from that point of time. And yes, CSK helped in a big way because all of a sudden I'm spending 45-50 days here."'So, I feel the relationship over the years has grown. It helped me improve as a person. It helped me improve as a cricketer. So, CSK just happened. I think it's good for Chennai. So, today it's good for me also. Nowadays when we go and say CSK, it's not a brand only in India, but when we go to Australia, South Africa, or any of the cricket playing nations,' he noted.- EndsMust Watch