IPL 2024: Dhoni to be at the helm of Chennai Super Kings one more time

The IPL 2024 is set to see Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the legendary Chennai Super Kings captain, in action as a captain-player one more time – fitness permitting.

As the deadline for the IPL franchises for retention and release of players expires on Sunday afternoon, the CSK management is banking on the former Indian captain to take key calls on this front – namely the decision on England’s talismanic allrounder Ben Stokes.

"Dhoni is definitely in our scheme of things as the captain-player. We have referred the decision on Stokes to him as the latter has made himself unavailable for next season to manage his workload – a decision which we respect fully," Kasi Viswanathan, the long serving CEO of the five-time champions, told National Herald.

Chennai, arguably one of the most supported teams in the 10-team league, humbled Gujarat Titans in the final earlier this year to claim their fifth crown to emulate Mumbai Indians.

The confirmation on Thala (leader) will be music for the ears of CSK fans, for whom the last season augured as the curtain call for the 42-year-old icon.

Dhoni drew a tsunami of adulation at each venue he visited even for the away games but after the final, he kept the fans guessing as always: ‘’Looking for an answer? This is the best time for me to announce my retirement. But the amount of love I have received all over. The easy thing would be to walk away from here, but the harder thing would be working hard for nine months and try to play another IPL. It would be a gift from me, won’t be easy on my body."

An intensely private person, the two-time World Cup winning captain had undergone a knee surgery immediately after the IPL 2023 and according to the team management, Dhoni’s rehabilitation and recovery had gone quite well.

There are more than four months to go for the new season and CSK, where MSD is a law into himself, has let him take a call on Stokes as if the England allrounder is released, Super Kings can utilise the freed up purse of Rs 16.25 crores (US $ 1.98 million) they had bought him for in the upcoming mini auction in Dubai on December 19.

Pandya to MI?

The most significant aspect about the final list of retention and release is the likely homecoming of Hardik Pandya, the Gujarat Titans captain for the last two years, to Mumbai Indians. As per the IPL guidelines, Mumbai Indians need to pay Rs 15 crore ($1.8 million approx) as Hardik’s salary and an undisclosed transfer fee to the Titans.

The allrounder also stands to earn up to 50 per cent of the transfer fee – like the football transfers – which will make it one of the most expensive and talked about trade offs in IPL history.

"It’s an open secret now and you will have to ask MI about their plans,’’ was all an insider of Titans said. While Pandya is reportedly keen on this move himself, the biggest challenge for MI will be to find the money for the trade as after the last IPL auction, the Mumbai Paltan has a minimal purse left in their kitty.

This will certainly entail releasing of some players, and the names of England speedster Jofra Archer, Chris Jordan, Piyush Chawla and Riley Meredith are being aired about whom MI can release to create the surplus funds for Pandya. Franchises will get an additional Rs 5 crore ($600,000 approx.) in their purse for the forthcoming IPL auctions.

If the deal goes through, Hardik will become only the third captain to be traded after Ravi Ashwin moved from Punjab Kings to Delhi Capitals and Rajasthan Royals traded Ajinkya Rahane, also to the Capitals, in 2020.

The younger of the Pandya brothers had started his IPL journey with MI as a rookie in 2015 and along with brother Krunal Pandya, was a part of four IPL-winning teams.