MS Dhoni's place is in doubt as Chennai Super Kings host Chennai Super Kings host Kolkata Knight Riders at Chepauk on Tuesday, April 14. CSK and KKR are two teams languishing near the bottom of the points table and look to go up as the other teams are making strides.
CSK somehow got two points from their four matches after their win over Delhi Capitals, while KKR are the only ones who have not won a game but have a point, thanks to a wash-out against Punjab Kings. While CSK have been hit with batting issues, KKR have struggled with their bowlers. Not many hope that MS Dhoni can solve the CSK issues as the fading talisman is past his best and his heyday.
Why is Dhoni not playing in IPL?
For the unversed, Dhoni is recovering from a calf injury that he picked up in the build-up to the IPL 2026. At that time, CSK had revealed that their talisman will "likely to miss the first two weeks" in the IPL 2026. He has not been travelling with CSK to their away venues and has not been with the team at Chepauk on match days.
Will Dhoni play for CSK vs KKR?
Dhoni is far away from playing this game against the Knight Riders. On the eve of the match against KKR, Dhoni had a stint in the nets but faced only throwdowns from the support staff members. He batted for a brief time at the nets towards the end of CSK's training session. Moreover, the 44-year-old did not keep wickets. All of this makes Dhoni's return for this clash highly unlikely.
No update on when Dhoni will play
There has been nothing on when Dhoni will take the field. CSK captain Ruturaj Gaikwad has been asked multiple times about Dhoni's return this season. All that he could give was that the former skipper will be back 'very soon'. Speaking during CSK's previous game against DC on April 11, Gaikwad said at the toss, "For those asking about MS Dhoni, he’s at the hotel watching and supporting us. But yes, very soon, you’ll see him out on the ground."
He was asked about Dhoni ahead of the away game against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru on April 5. "MS is getting back slowly; sometimes it takes time. If he's ready to play, it'll be soon," Gaikwad had said at the toss.
