IPL 2022: Chennai Super Kings pin hopes on MS Dhoni magic to catch up with Mumbai Indians
India Today
IPL 2022: Chennai Super Kings, who have managed to retain their core, will be looking to defend their title and further MS Dhoni's legacy. The absence of Deepak Chahar, though, is a significant setback for the 4-time champions.
MS Dhoni may not be the batter that he was when he was hitting the best of the bowlers out of the park with ease but he is still as sharp and more experienced than the man who chose spinners over pacers for that famous T20 World Cup bowl out in 2007. The astute warhorse continues to be the face of Chennai Super Kings despite having given up all forms of international cricket.\
It's no surprise when CSK CEO Kasi Viswanathan says "Thailaivan Dhoni will take care". For the 2nd successive year, CSK have avoided wholesale changes.
IPL 2022: FULL COVERAGE | SCHEDULE
Even after their ordinary run in 2022, CSK did not go for a complete revamp and it was no surprise that they tried to bring back familiar faces into the set-up at the mega auction. The likes of Ambati Rayudu, Robin Uthappa, Deepak Chahar and Dwayne Bravo have been trusted lieutenants of Dhoni and the skipper would have been happy to have them back.
Speculation about Dhoni's future in the IPL has become a constant, but the former skipper had made it clear that there is a richer legacy that he is targeting. He pushed Ravindra Jadeja to the higher retention bracket after making it clear last year that he wanted to make sure that CSK manage to retain a strong core group.
Over the last few years, Dhoni's batting has been scrutinized but CSK captain, it is safe to say, has seen himself more as a leader than a batter in the side. Despite his fading reflexes and ability to consistently pull off those late finishes, CSK managed to get past the finish line last season. Dhoni was happy to take a backseat and let the explosive batters take centre stage and expect nothing different from the skipper this year as well.
Much like last year, CSK has an explosive batting unit to make up for their captain's shortcomings with the bat. The departure of Faf du Plessis is a big blow for CSK as the South African star, who will lead Royal Challengers Bangalore, had been on of their consistent run-getters.
