IPL: Chepauk sees the last of M.S. Dhoni as a player, or have they?

The IPL 2026 saw two more play-off spots being decided on Monday (Sunrisers Hyderabad & Gujarat Titans), but the buzz was more on whether the Chepauk Stadium had seen the last of Mahendra Singh Dhoni. The talismanic former captain, who hadn’t faced a single ball or donned the keeping gloves throughout the Chennai Super Kings campaign apparently due to a nagging calf strain, came out with the team members for their customary end-of-season lap before their fiercely loyal fans.

It looked like the curtain call – though an anti-climax of sorts – but then the legend ought to share some of the blame for this. Dhoni has kept his legion of fans guessing about quitting as a player ever since the nationwide farewell he received across the venues after leading CSK to their last title in 2023, returning to action with a dodgy knee the very next year – and then again as an ‘uncapped’ player in 2025 – most often looking like a pale shadow of himself.

The argument that plays out everytime is that the former India captain, who will be 45 in less than a month’s time, is still the biggest brand that the yellow shirts look to encash on. The IPL being a tournament of privately owned franchises, it’s upto each management  and head coach Stephen Fleming echoed their sentiments when he said: ‘’MS has been around a lot this year, which has been really important for the team, for a lot of the young players, and for continuity. So, he’s been a big part of it. He hasn’t played, but he’s still had a big influence on the team.’’ 

The bigger picture about IPL, despite the exponential rise in valuation in acquisition of two franchise, presents a disturbing trend this year. There has been a fall in viewership as well as interest levels, albeit with the West Asia crisis proving to be a distraction and the meandering nature of the league not helping either. Under the circumstances, it’s time that the franchises look at developing new Indian stars as brand ambassadors of the league – and CSK had taken a step in the right direction by investing on someone like Sanju Samson.

However, the CSK management is unyielding when it comes to the future of Dhoni as a player. Speaking to the National Herald, their long serving CEO Kashi Viswanathan says: ‘’The lap of Chepauk is a ritual which we do every year after our last game at home and it has got nothing to do with his future. It’s Dhoni himself who will decide on his future as a player with us – and I am sure he will take a call at the opportune moment. As far as we are concerned, he will continue to remain with CSK.’’

 The five-time champions, meanwhile, are stuck at the sixth place with 12 points from 13 matches. They will need to beat Gujarat Titans on Thursday (21 May) in Ahmedabad and other results to go their way to keep any mathematical chances of reaching the play-offs alive. Going by their skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad’s update, Dhoni will not appear in the last game too – giving rise to the possibility that one has seen the last of the great man in IPL stage.

Speaking to the broadcasters after Monday’s game, Suresh Raina – a longtime deputy of Dhoni during the glory days of CSK – revealed the later’s candid admission. ‘’I told him you have given IPL 2026 a missed call. It won’t count. You have to come back next year,’’ Raina said, to which Dhoni apparently said: ‘’ Nahi yaar, body thoda waisa hai’(No man, the body is a bit like that). I said we are not believing anything. You have to play next year.’’

Raina’s emotional appeal could well be misplaced. But then, it’s been always a case of never-say-never with Dhoni and CSK!