Dhoni on his IPL future: ‘Needs to be in the best interest of the team’

MS Dhoni has resorted to a wait-and-watch approach before deciding on his IPL future. As the IPL governing council chalks out the auction and retention plans ahead of the 2025 season, Dhoni wants to see what rule changes come into effect, especially with regard to player retention, before he makes a decision on whether to play another season or not.

“There is a lot of time for it,” Dhoni, who turned 43 in July, said at an event in Hyderabad. “We have to see what decision they take on player retention etc. Right now, the ball is not in our court.

“So, once the rules and regulations get formalised, I will take a call, but needs to be in the best interest of the team.”

The IPL governing council met franchise owners and officials on Wednesday evening in Mumbai, to discuss a host of rules. On the meeting’s agenda was the Impact Player rule, how many players are to be retained, and the existence and frequency of the mega auction (one is due before next season) among other points.

Questions on Dhoni’s future at the IPL have cropped up at the end of and between seasons for the previous few years now, and one part of those questions – regarding the succession plan at Chennai Super Kings (CSK) – was answered earlier this year when he handed over the captaincy to Ruturaj Gaikwad days before the season started.

CSK narrowly lost out on a playoffs berth under Gaikwad when they finished fifth on the table with 14 points, the same as RCB on fourth spot but behind on net run rate.

Dhoni played the role of six-hitting specialist in the death overs last season. He mostly walked out in the dying moments of the CSK innings and smoked 13 sixes and 14 fours in the 73 balls he faced across the season, translating to roughly three balls per boundary. His strike rate was a whopping 220.54 – the first season where he struck at over 200 – and he finished unbeaten in eight of his 11 innings.