Chennai Super Kings (CSK) will get a major boost at the halfway mark of the league stage of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026. MS Dhoni, who has been out with a calf injury, is expected to regain full fitness for the Mumbai Indians (MI) match on April 23 at the Wankhede Stadium.
Dhoni, who had started preparations for IPL 2026 last year, had sustained an injury during CSK’s pre-season camp. This has forced Ruturaj Gaikwad to lead the 5-team champions without the services of the smartest brain in all of cricket. The results weren’t great in the beginning, but CSK are turning the corner now.
MS Dhoni almost fit
According to the Indian Express, Dhoni will most likely play his first game of the season on April 23. The IPL veteran has already missed 5 matches and isn’t expected to travel with the team to the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium for the away Sunrisers Hyderabad match on April 18.
During his rehabilitation, Dhoni hasn’t travelled with the team. In fact, he hasn’t even been present at the MA Chidambaram Stadium for CSK’s home matches. He has been training regularly, spending long hours batting in the nets. He recently trained with CSK batting coach Mike Hussey but didn’t face any frontline bowlers.
Who goes out?
He has shown no signs of discomfort, but until now, he has mostly been facing throwdowns. He’s expected to undergo fitness tests before getting clearance to feature in cricket’s El Clásico, MI vs CSK, on April 23. However, Dhoni’s inclusion may create a problem. If he comes in, who goes out?
Considering that CSK’s bowling seems to be the weak link, they can’t drop any bowler. It has to be a batter who makes way for him. Among all the batters, Sarfaraz Khan looks like the one who might be most disposable. He doesn’t have a fixed spot like Dewald Brevis or Shivam Dube, and CSK can’t risk leaving Ayush Mhatre out.
Helping from the sidelines
Despite being away from the limelight, Dhoni has been trying his best to help the team. After CSK beat the Kolkata Knight Riders on April 14, bowling coach Sridharan Sriram revealed that Noor Ahmad spent time with Dhoni before the game. This resulted in the Afghan spinner taking a 3-fer and bagging the ‘player of the match’ award.
“MS (Dhoni) had a long chat with him in one of the practice sessions, getting his leg break to go. So I think it was very helpful for him and the results were there to show,” Sriram said.
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