Chennai, May 25 (UNI) When it will be iconic M S Dhoni's swansong. When he will retire
from the IPL.
The guessing game continues as he neither said he had done nor he was coming back
as he had the luxury of time to take a decision.
It surfaced at the end of last edition in the backdrop of his remarks he would love to play
his last match at his home ground of Chepauk, the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) skipper,
who had led the team to a record five IPL titles and five finals in the first 14 editions, had
said.
And it surfaced again today when the signed off this IPL edition in style leading CSK to
a commanding win over Gujarat Titans at Ahmedabad on Sunday evening.
Dhoni was the first to play 250 matches in the IPL, reaching the milestone in 2023, four
years after he played his last international game for India.
He had resigned as CSK captain ahead of IPL 2022, but took back the captaincy after
his successor Ravindra Jadeja stepped down mid-way through the season.
He led the team to the title in 2023, before stepping down from captaincy again next year
before taking up the mantle midway this year due to the injury of Ruturaj Gaikwad who
missed the rest of the IPL.
Keeping the cards close to his chest, Dhoni was non-committal on his retirement and said
he still has 4-5 months' time to take a decision on his rerirement from the IPL.
With Dhoni not getting to bat against the Titans and could not be seen in action with the willow
for one last time this season, he ended the 2025 IPL with a tally of 196 runs from 13 innings at
a strike rate of 135.17.
At the post match presentation, Dhoni when queried about his retirement, said It depends.
"I have four or five months to decide (whether to play or not), the 43-year-old quipped, hinting
that he still has enough in his armoury and could still be available for the next edition.
Dhoni, who was the uncapped player for CSK this year, said "It's professional cricket; you have
to be at your best....It's not performances."
"What's important is to see how much hunger you have. I have enough time to decide", he
said.
"I'll go back to Ranchi.... I'm not saying I'm done; I'm not saying I'm coming back. I have the
luxury of time", the talismanic skipper.
On today's win, despite missing out on a play off spot, he said "It's good...Good to finish on
a winning note. This was among the perfect performances. This was one game where the
catching was also good."
"When we started the season, the first four games out of six were in Chennai. We won tosses
and chased. Second innings, we were under a bit of pressure. So I was more worried about
the batting department. Now everybody has contributed.", he said.
"When Ritu (Gaikwad) comes back next year... he doesn't have to worry about too many things.
"Definitely you feel old (as Suryavanshi touched his feet). I asked Andre, 'How old are you?'
And he's exactly 25 years younger than me!"", Dhoni summed up, while the suspense on his
retirement contiunes.
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