With IPL 2026 approaching and the question of where MS Dhoni fits in still hanging in the air, Chennai Super Kings find themselves navigating both team form and a growing cloud of uncertainty around the India legend’s return. Dhoni has not taken the field this season, after a calf problem flared up just days before the start of the 19th edition. Chennai had initially suggested he would miss action for around two weeks, but three weeks into the tournament there is still no definitive timeline. Former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar has now criticised how the franchise has managed the situation, arguing that the handling has made the pressure on captain Ruturaj Gaikwad even heavier.
Key takeaways
- MS Dhoni remains sidelined for IPL 2026 despite an early expectation of a short absence due to a calf injury.
- Chennai Super Kings’ start has been unstable, with losses in their opening three matches before a two-game winning streak.
- Ruturaj Gaikwad’s leadership and batting have come under scrutiny, with him scoring only 82 runs across six innings.
- Sanjay Manjrekar said the responsibility should lie with CSK’s leadership and decision-makers rather than Gaikwad.
- Manjrekar questioned the practicality of fitting Dhoni into the XI, given his recent usage and on-field demands.
- CSK’s batting staff, including Michael Hussey, described Dhoni’s rehabilitation as progressing well, but offered no firm return date.
Dhoni’s prolonged absence and CSK’s uneven campaign
The build-up around Dhoni’s role in IPL 2026—whether the Impact Player mechanism would be used to get him into the playing XI—has not been resolved. Dhoni is yet to feature this season, and the calf injury that sidelined him close to the tournament opener has stretched longer than the initial estimate. Chennai’s early indication was that he would be out for approximately two weeks, yet even after three weeks of the competition, clarity on his return is still missing.
Without Dhoni in the mix, CSK have endured a stop-start run. They suffered defeats in their first three matches, then bounced back by winning two consecutive games, before slipping again. That pattern has left them positioned in the lower half of the points table.
Captain Ruturaj Gaikwad has faced added scrutiny for the team’s struggles. His own batting output has also been underwhelming so far, with a total of 82 runs from six innings, intensifying calls for improvement both as a leader and as a top-order batter.
Manjrekar targets CSK management over handling of Dhoni situation
Manjrekar, speaking on the Sportstar Insight Edge podcast, defended Gaikwad while placing the blame on the franchise’s decision-making process. In his view, it is the leadership group and the people responsible for major calls who should be answerable for how the Dhoni uncertainty has been managed.
“This blame, I’m going to put at the doorstep of the owners and people who make the big decisions. Because Gaikwad, before he was captain, was phenomenal at the top of the order,” he said, framing the captain’s earlier form as evidence that the problems should not be pinned solely on him.
Manjrekar also argued that the immense fan obsession around Dhoni has made Gaikwad’s task more difficult. He claimed that the situation has been handled in a way that feeds a culture of excessive deference, which ultimately spills over into how teams operate and how decisions are perceived.
He added, “And then that thing with M.S. Dhoni — whether he’s going to be playing, whether he’s going to be captain — they handled that very badly. And this is where you see the sycophancy of Indian culture that has seeped into cricket as well. I mean, there isn’t just a fan following of Dhoni, there is sycophancy around it.”
Dhoni fandom and an example Manjrekar says changed the focus
To highlight the intensity of Dhoni’s following, Manjrekar recalled a moment from the past. He described an incident where Dhoni attempted to place his bat into the crease, which Manjrekar believed was a very tight call that should have resulted in a run-out decision. He said that when he shared that view, people reacted angrily because it was interpreted as being against Dhoni, and he suggested that the broader cricketing context was lost in the reaction.
“There was one instance of Dhoni trying to put his bat into the crease, and it was a very close call. And I said he was clearly short and should be run out. They got angry with me for saying that because it was seen as anti-Dhoni. Somewhere, they lost sight of the bigger picture,” he recalled.
Can Dhoni’s return ease pressure on Gaikwad? Manjrekar doubts it
When asked whether Dhoni’s eventual comeback could reduce the burden on Gaikwad, Manjrekar said he was not convinced CSK can accommodate Dhoni in a way that solves the current challenges. He also criticised the way Dhoni has been used in recent seasons, describing a pattern where he would come down the order for a brief spell and the surrounding hype would inflate expectations.
“Maybe, but then you have to play Dhoni on the field. And how do you do that? Increasingly, he’s finding it tough to deliver. It was a bit of a joke when he came down the order to face three or four balls and the coverage hyped it up as ‘what an innings’. It lasted four balls,” Manjrekar said, arguing that such a role is neither workable nor sustainable as a long-term approach.
He continued, “So that’s not feasible anymore, and it was never going to be a long-term solution. I can’t pretend to know how Ruturaj felt when M.S. was on the field but not captaining, as opposed to not being there at all.”
No confirmed timeline for next match vs Mumbai Indians
As it stands, CSK still have no clear picture of Dhoni’s availability for their next fixture against the Mumbai Indians. Despite the ongoing recovery, Dhoni has reportedly travelled with the squad as he continues his rehabilitation work.
CSK batting coach Michael Hussey offered a cautious update when asked about Dhoni’s return. He said the wicketkeeper-batter is progressing well through his rehab, and he expressed satisfaction with how Dhoni has been batting in training, but he did not provide a definitive answer on timing.
“Not really, I’m not sure,” Hussey said. “He’s progressing nicely with his rehab, and I’m happy with how he’s batting.”
