Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni on Sunday kept the world guessing on his IPL future after his team’s convincing victory against Gujarat Titans at Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad
After CSK’s dominating 83-run win over GT in their last league match, the 43-year old Dhoni was asked about his IPL future. However, the five-times champions did not give a definitive answer, saying that he will take to decide whether he will come back next season.
“It depends, you know. Again, I would say the same thing. I have 4-5 months to decide. There is no hurry to decide,” said Dhoni in the post-match presentation ceremony.
“Every year, it’s 15% more effort. To keep the body fit. Not to forget this is top level cricket. It’s professional cricket. You have to be at your best,” he added.
Dhoni said that lack of performance can never be his reason for taking the retirement decision.
“It’s not always performance that you can count. Because if cricketers start retiring because of performances, few of them will retire when they are 22. So what is important is to see how much hunger you have. What kind of fitness you have. And how much you can contribute to the team. Whether the team needs you or not,” he said.
“So [I] have enough time and go back to Ranchi. I haven’t been home for a long time…enjoy a few bike rides… [take a] couple of months then decide,” he added.
When asked further on the decision, Dhoni re-iterated that he has the luxury of time to decide his future.
“I am not saying I am done. I am not saying I am coming back here at the same time. As I said, I have the luxury of timing. When you have the luxury, why not? Think about it and then you can decide,” the former India skipper said.
In IPL 2025, Dhoni had to step in midway to captain CSK after Ruturaj Gaikwad was ruled out of the tournament due to injury. He led CSK to three out of their four wins and six defeats in the IPL 2025 season.
When it comes to his own batting performance, Dhoni managed to score 196 runs in 13 innings coming lower down the order with a highest score of 30.
