The newly appointed Chennai Super Kings captain Ruturaj Gaikwad revealed that MS Dhoni decided to pass on the captaincy baton to him in the last IPL season. In the IPL 2023, Dhoni led CSK to a record-equalling fifth triumph, making him the joint-most successful captain alongside former Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma in the history of the cash-rich T20 league.
Ahead of IPL 2024 opener against Royal Challengers Bangalore, Chennai Super Kings management pulled off a massive surprise by announcing the departure of MS Dhoni as a captain and handing over the leadership role to Gaikwad.
In an official statement, CSK stated that it was MS Dhoni who actually handed over the captaincy to Ruturaj Gaikwad through a smooth transition process. The Pune-born cricketer will become the fourth player after Dhoni, Suresh Raina and Ravindra Jadeja to lead CSK when the defending champions take on RCB in the IPL 2024 opener in Chepauk.
'Mahi Bhai hinted about captaincy in last IPL season': Ruturaj Gaikwad
In a video released by Indian Premier League (IPL) on its X handle (formerly Twitter), Ruturaj Gaikwad revealed that MS Dhoni hinted about a change in captaincy in IPL 2023 and asked to be ready as he decided to handover the leadership to him.
The 27-year-old added that Dhoni made him involved match simulation in order to be ready to take over the captaincy duties.
"Last year, Mahi bhai had hinted about captaincy, that be ready & this shouldn't come as a surprise to you." new CSK skipper said.
"When I came to the camp, he made me involved in some of the match simulations and back of the mind it was there, a week ago, he told I have decide this." Gaikwad added.
MS Dhoni resigned as a captain and handed over leadership role to Ravindra Jadeja ahead of IPL 2022. The change of guard in captaincy turned out to be unsuccessful as CSK suffered six losses in 8 matches and Dhoni was reinstated as a captain.
MS Dhoni continued to lead the team in IPL 2023 and completed an incredible comeback with fifth IPL triumph, making Chennai Super Kings the second team after Mumbai Indians to achieve this milestone in the history of Indian Premier League.
'Got to know before captains meeting': CSK CEO Kasi Vishwanathan
Chennai Super Kings CEO Kasi Vishwanathan revealed that the decision to hand over captaincy duties to Ruturaj Gaikwad by MS Dhoni was taken just before the captains' meeting. He added that Dhoni took the decision in the best interest of the team.
"Whatever Dhoni does, it is in the best interest of the team. I got to know of the decision just before the captains' meeting. You have to respect his decision, it is his call," CSK CEO told PTI.
MS Dhoni stepped down from captaincy duties as the joint-most successful skipper alongside former MI captain Rohit Sharma, with five titles. Dhoni has 133 wins in 226 matches, the most by a captain in the tournament. Apart from CSK, MS Dhoni also led Rising Pune Super Giants in IPL 2016 but it was unsuccessful as the team failed to qualify for playoffs after finishing 7th in the league.
But, MS Dhoni's association with Chennai Super Kings has been nothing short of legendary and cemented his status as one of the most iconic captains in IPL.
