MS Dhoni missed entire IPL 2026 for CSK. Image Credits - AFP
Whether MS Dhoni, when will the former Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain play, is he really fit enough... these few questions remain the talk of the town throughout the Indian Premier League (IPL 2026) season.
But with CSK out of the competition, it has been the first season the five-time champions have played without the services of the legendary wicketkeeper.
Initially, Dhoni sustained a calf injury that forced him out, and then the injured his thumb. Apart from those two injuries, he has also been marred by a long-lasting knee issue.
GT thrash CSK to break their playoff dreams
In the final league, CSK were tossed around by Gujarat Titans, who posted a mammoth total of 229/4 in their alloted quota. They thoroughly dominatied CSK in the final league match. However, the task of chasing 230 against the GT bowlers was made unnecessarily difficult by the Chennai batters.
Mohammad Siraj removed CSK's mainstays - Sanju Samson, Ruturaj Gaikwad and Urvil Patel in his opening burst. Later, Shivam Dube acted as a lone wolf, but Kagiso Rabada and Rashid Khan swiped off the rest of the batting.
Eventually, Chennai lost their final league by a massive margin of 89 runs, becoming the third team to get eliminated this season.
Also Read: Shubman Gill Insults CSK With 'Shush' Gesture After One-Of-A-Kind IPL Catch
Ruturaj Gaikwad on MS Dhoni's IPL future
After the do-or-die fixture, CSK Captain Ruturaj Gaikwad was asked about MS Dhoni's availability for the next IPL season. The skipper played it safe and didn't answer the million-dollar question, but also said MSD was a major miss.
"You and I'll get to know it next year. It's a hard miss for us. He (MS Dhoni) can come in those late overs and change the game just by staying in the crease. Never know about next season but really happy with the guys we have," Ruturaj Gaikwad said in the post-match presentation after CSK's final game.
CSK bowling coach Eric Simons also made a statement on the chance for MSD to feature in IPL 2027.
“He has hit the ball so well. He obviously had a leg injury which made it very difficult for him to run. So, that’s why he couldn’t play. But in terms of hitting the ball in the nets, he’s hitting it as well as I’ve ever seen him hit it. But I keep saying this, only MS will know and MS will make the decision about when he’s ready and when he’s right," the CSK bowling coach had said in the post-match presser.
Although Gaikwad praised MS Dhoni, he also hinted at CSK's transition, directly stating that the five-time winners have moved on from the 44-year-old wicketkeeper.
"Not many people buy the fact that we are a young team in transition, with a lot of inexperienced players. More than 8-10 players have played less than 20 games, they've gotten exposure, we've found out what areas we're lacking. We still got six away wins, proud of the unit," Ruturaj Gaikwad on CSK's transition phase.
Injuries made IPL 2026 trickier for CSK
Chennai entered this season with a relatively weaker bowling department, relying primarily on younger Indian pacers and two foreign spinners. Although they took a little longer to find their best combination, CSK got it all sorted by mid-season.
However, when things started to look sorted, they began to lose players to injuries. Apart from MS Dhoni, they had a long list of injured players, i.e. Khaleel Ahmed, Ayush Mhatre, Nathan Ellis, Spencer Johnson, Jamie Overton and Ramakrishna Ghosh.
Despite that, the Ruturaj Gaikwad-led unit were able to win six matches in the season.
Also Read: How SRH Can Finish In Top 2 For IPL 2026 Playoffs?
