What do we know about MS Dhoni? For starters, he remains a top-class cricketer\u2014one who seems most at home with the long hair look, and whose hitting has often carried the unmistakable air of someone taking the ball personally. There\u2019s also the ongoing subplot of what happens when his presence intersects with family life and high-visibility moments on television. In any case, the larger point is that Dhoni\u2019s impact still follows him into every conversation around IPL cricket.<\/p>\n
In March, Sakshi Dhoni shared an Instagram story while heading to the airport. The caption read, \u201cBack in 75 days Ranchi.\u201d Fans quickly made the connection: Dhoni is 44, he is nearing the latter stages of his career, and his family would be present for every IPL match in 2026. That expectation largely proved correct\u2014save for one small detail. The current IPL season is already more than halfway through, and Dhoni has still not taken the field. A calf injury has kept him out of view and away from match action.<\/p>\n
CSK batting coach Michael Hussey explained that Dhoni\u2019s preparation has been focused on more than just batting. \u201cI know he\u2019s been upping his running speeds,\u201d Hussey said. \u201cAnd that\u2019s probably the sticking point. We\u2019re confident from a skill perspective\u2014his batting and his wicketkeeping\u2014but the key was making sure he could sustain good running power, especially towards the back end of an innings. That\u2019s when he has to keep scanning for those ones and twos.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hussey added that the club\u2019s timeline is shaped by Dhoni\u2019s comfort level rather than a set schedule. \u201cSo as soon as he gets the confidence in his calf, I\u2019m sure he\u2019ll get the green light to go. At the moment, we\u2019re guided by him. I think Chennai is waiting too\u2014fans are waiting, and everyone is hoping. We\u2019re just waiting for him to be able to tell himself, and us, that he\u2019s confident in his leg now. Then he can give his best efforts.\u201d<\/p>\n
Even with the season progressing, Dhoni\u2019s approach has been cautious. Hussey revealed that Dhoni is choosing to stay away from the ground on match days. \u201cHe always wants what\u2019s best for the team,\u201d Hussey said. \u201cHe was worried that if he came, there might be a bit too much of a distraction.\u201d<\/p>\n
He elaborated on the reasoning behind that decision. \u201cObviously, the cameras would be on him a lot. The crowd would be cheering for him and you get that kind of attention. He really wanted the side to be able to go about its job \u2014 do our thing. Whether that\u2019s right or wrong isn\u2019t my call to make, but that\u2019s the thinking behind it.\u201d<\/p>\n
In the middle of all the cricket talk, there was also a lighter line of chatter: Dhoni has apparently become the subject of internet humour, with fans joking that he fits the description of the \u201cgirl in the red dress\u201d meme character.<\/p>\n
Hussey returned to the more serious cricket angle as he described Dhoni\u2019s involvement around the squad. \u201cObviously, he\u2019s been watching very closely back home,\u201d he said. \u201cI personally love having him around the dressing room. He brings so much wisdom, and he gives the other players confidence. He\u2019s training all the time and he has this bubbly personality during sessions, where he shares his experience with the group. But the key factor was that he didn\u2019t want to become a distraction for the rest of the team\u2014so on game day, he decided to stay away.\u201d<\/p>\n
CSK\u2019s opening match against Rajasthan Royals more than a month ago carried a sense of milestone. It was the franchise\u2019s first IPL game in which neither Dhoni nor Suresh Raina was included in the playing XI. At the time, it felt like an early sign of what the team\u2019s next phase might look like. When asked whether that was the case, head coach Stephen Fleming insisted that even though Dhoni wasn\u2019t present in person, his influence was still embedded in the group. Fleming suggested that Dhoni\u2019s mindset had been on the bigger picture\u2014aware he wasn\u2019t only speaking to a room full of reporters, but to a huge online audience that rarely hesitates to pick sides. In a league where fandom can be passionate and sharply divided, Fleming\u2019s message was simple: you\u2019re either with one of India\u2019s most influential cricketing figures, or you\u2019re looking for less-than-civil, disrespectful debate.<\/p>\n
Just a few days earlier, Sunrisers Hyderabad bowling coach Muttiah Muralidaran had discussed the business reality of the IPL. He said the tournament is a commercial enterprise, and for it to stay thriving, some compromises have to be accepted\u2014such as maintaining an even contest between bat and ball. Expanding on his point, Muralidaran compared teams to corporate entities, players to valuable assets, and CSK as a franchise that holds an especially high-value asset. In that framing, there\u2019s no reason to rush or to risk any further damage. And so, this storyline keeps rolling: every year, the recurring question is whether Dhoni will be fit to play the next season. This year, the question has shifted to whether he can manage to play this one. For the record, the signs have not looked too negative, though the argument remains that he could have given himself a greater chance to test his mobility rather than leaving it entirely to other people\u2019s observations.<\/p>\n
The final detail from training and preparations came from the stadium itself. The grounds staff reportedly struggled to keep up with the volume of balls Dhoni was sending into the stands during a long net session. It wasn\u2019t his usual quick routine either\u2014this was extended time, with room to check out Hardik Pandya\u2019s bat, reminisce about the \u201cgood old days\u201d with Kieron Pollard, and then spend roughly forty minutes to an hour working on whether he could challenge the stars of the Chepauk roof\u2014or at the very least find ways to bring parts of it into play.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
What do we know about MS Dhoni? For starters, he remains a top-class cricketer\u2014one who seems most at home with the long hair look, and…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":6800,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_title":"MS Dhoni IPL Update: Family Life, Cricket Spotlight","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"MS Dhoni\u2019s IPL spotlight continues as cricket brilliance meets family life\u2014fans track his latest chapter, on-field form, and TV-visible moments.","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6801","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ipl"],"yoast_head":"\n