Chennai Super Kings captain MS Dhoni might have played his final season of the Indian Premier League this year, or did he?. The question surrounding Dhoni's future in the IPL has been doing the rounds since 2021 when Danny Morrison asked him whether it would be his final season to which the skipper famously replied, "Definitely Not".
Dhoni was asked the same question during IPL 2023 but he himself didn't give a definitive answer on his future plans.
The 41-year-old simply said that he would assess the situation next year as he won't playing till February at least because the IPL season does not begin before late March-April.
Will he or won't he?
CSK CEO Kasi Viswanathan recently opened up on the issue of Dhoni's retirement and his knee surgery in Mumbai.
Dhoni was struggling with a knee injury during IPL 2023 but kept on playing till the end and managed to lift the title for the fifth time to level with Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma.
"We never asked him things like 'do you want to play or do you want to sit out?' If he can't, he would've told us straightaway.
"We knew it was a struggle for him to play, but his commitment to the team, his leadership and how the team benefits everyone knows. From that perspective, you have to appreciate him
"Till the final, he never complained about his knee to anybody. Though everyone knew, and you would've seen him struggling while running, he never complained even once. After the final, he said, 'okay, I'll have a surgery'. He's finished his surgery, he's quite happy, he's recovering," Viswanathan told ESPNcricinfo.
Dhoni to start in rehab in Ranchi 3 weeks post surgery
He also informed that Dhoni will soon start his rehab in Ranchi after the surgery.
"He said he'll rest for three weeks and then start his rehab. And like he said, he's not going to play until January-February."
When asked about Dhoni's future plans, Viswanathan said, "He knows what to do, how to go about it, so we aren't going to ask him 'what are you going to do, how' etc. He will inform us on his own.
"Whatever he's doing, he'll call first and inform only Mr N Srinivasan, not anyone else. Factually, he'll be straightforward with him. From him, we'll get the information that this is what he's doing. It's been this way since 2008. That's how it will continue."
