Wasim Jaffer anticipates that MS Dhoni will participate in the entire IPL 2024 season, despite stepping down as captain, as Chennai Super Kings (CSK) has limited wicketkeeping choices. Devon Conway’s injury leaves Chennai Super Kings (CSK) with just one other wicketkeeping choice, 18-year-old Aravelly Avinash. Avinash, who has only played two List-A matches, is making his IPL debut this season. Meanwhile, MS Dhoni announced his decision to step down as captain just a day before the season opener against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB). Ruturaj Gaikwad has been appointed as the new captain of Chennai Super Kings (CSK).
With the back-up wicket-keeper being an Under-19 player, don’t want to throw him in right away- Wasim Jaffer
In a conversation with ESPNCricinfo about the possibility of MS Dhoni missing a few games, Wasim Jaffer commented,
“I see him playing most of this season. With the back-up wicket-keeper being an Under-19 player ( Aravelly Avanish), don’t want to throw him in right away. Probably the right time to retire would have been the last season, if at all he wanted to, after winning the championship. But now that he has returned, expect him to play a major role and help Ruturaj Gaikwad,”
Tom Moody speculated whether MS Dhoni’s decision to step down was influenced by his physical condition.
“Does this mean during the preparations for the season, it hasn’t gone to plan for MS Dhoni physically? At the end of the day, he is in his 40s and he has played an enormous amount of cricket and that takes a toll on the body, particularly as a keeper. I wonder if he has made the decision questioning whether he can get through a whole tournament. And this gives him the flexibility without compromising the side. So he is thinking about the side first,” said Tom Moody.
MS Dhoni played the 2023 IPL season with a knee injury that later required surgery. Despite this, the 42-year-old concluded his tenure as the IPL’s most successful captain, achieving 133 wins in 226 games and leading Chennai Super Kings (CSK) to five titles.
The best captain the IPL has seen- Tom Moody on MS Dhoni
Tom Moody praised MS Dhoni as the best-ever IPL captain, highlighting his skill in leading average squads to surpass expectations and secure titles. During the 2023 IPL season, Dhoni also became the only player to captain a franchise (CSK) in 200 games.
“The best captain the IPL has seen. Because I don’t think he has always had the best squad, he has made a lot out of average squads and last year was a good example of that. Winning a title when no one ever thought that would be the case but he seems to be able to elevate a team and individuals beyond what their own expectations are, let alone those of experts,” said Moody.
Moody added,
“He has got a wonderful and calm way about him where he manages to pull off things that are unexpected. He makes decisions that makes a viewer say ‘Actually I get that’. But if someone else made that decision, they would be yelling at why is he making that decision, that is a crazy decision. But Dhoni makes it happen,”
MS Dhoni had previously stepped down from captaincy before the 2022 IPL season, with Ravindra Jadeja taking over. However, due to a disappointing campaign, Dhoni reclaimed the captaincy midway through the season and continued as captain for the entire IPL 2023 season.
Also Read: https://goworldwide.co.in/ashwin-on-key-concern-with-matheesha-pathirana/