After what seems to be an eternity, MS Dhoni is all set to don the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) jersey for the first time in the Indian Premier League (IPL 2026) as he is expected to finally return to action in the game against the Gujarat Titans (GT) on Sunday. The five-time champions haven’t felt the pinch of the former captain’s absence so far in the tournament, although there is a lot of hype off the field from fans around his return. Dhoni’s return to the playing XI will mean Kartik Sharma will lose his spot in the playing XI while CSK will be forced to bring in an extra bowler or batter as an impact player depending on whether they will bat or bowl.
Predicted CSK playing XI vs GT
Sanju Samson, Ruturaj Gaikwad (C), Sarfaraz Khan, Dewald Brevis, Shivam Dube, Jamie Overton, MS Dhoni (WK), Akeal Hosein, Noor Ahmad, Mukul Choudhary, Anshul Kamboj
Impact player: Karthik Sharma / Gurjapneet Singh
The return of MS Dhoni
Dhoni did not feature in the first seven matches for CSK in IPL 2026 as he was ruled out after suffering a calf strain right before the start of the tournament. Although he travelled with the side for the fixtures, he was confined to his hotel room during the game as he was still recovering. However, he is set to make his comeback in the game against GT, and it could very well be the case that he is deployed as a full-time player rather than an impact substitute, as many have speculated.
Following CSK’s mammoth 103-run win against MI, batting coach Michael Hussey hinted that Dhoni could take over the gloves from Sanju Samson when he returns to action. Now, it is no strange fact that Dhoni’s knee and calf issues have forced him to bat at number 7 or 8, where he faces very few deliveries and tries to create the maximum impact via scoring boundaries, an approach that has been severely criticised in the past. But, it looks like CSK will stick to the same strategy, and if they are short of runs, could bring in Karthik Sharma as an impact substitute to boost their batting in the middle-order.
After recording astonishing figures of 4/17 in the previous game, Akeal is expected to be used in the playing XI as a full-time member rather than as an impact player against GT. CSK will be pinning their hopes on the duo of Hosein and Noor to replicate their feat from the game at Wankhede and choke the opposition with spin in Chennai on Sunday.
But the surface at the MA Chidambaram Stadium has changed, and it no longer favours spinners like it used to. Therefore, CSK will need enough pacers in their line-up. While Anshul Kamboj, Mukul Choudhary and Jamie Overton will serve as the frontline pacers, the five-time champions could opt to use Gurjapneet Singh as an impact player. He could replace Shivam Dube in the playing XI who has bowled just 2 overs so far in IPL 2026.
