Chennai Super Kings captain Ruturaj Gaikwad has admitted that he is unsure about whether legendary wicketkeeper-batsman MS Dhoni will return for IPL 2027.
ms dhoni He did not play a single match during IPL 2026 due to multiple injuries and his absence was greatly felt during CSK’s tough campaign. The five-time champions ultimately finished the season outside the top four as injuries, inconsistent combinations and a lack of experienced finishers led to repeated losses.
“Obviously, you will know it only next year” – Ruturaj Gaikwad on MS Dhoni
Chennai Super Kings lost their last match ipl 2026 And after that match against Gujarat Titans, naturally, questions regarding MS Dhoni’s future came to the fore once again.
Speaking after the match, Ruturaj Gaikwad admitted that even in the CSK dressing room there is currently no clarity about whether MS Dhoni will play in IPL 2027 or not.
Ruturaj Gaikwad said, “Obviously you will know it only next year (if MS Dhoni plays in IPL 2027). Even I will know it only next year. Obviously, it is definitely a tough, tough miss for us. He is someone who can strike fear in the opposition, especially in those last overs. Can really change the game, can really change the momentum by being at the crease.”
“So, he’s someone who, obviously we missed a lot this season. But, I mean, we never know about next season, but obviously we’re very happy with the guys we had and the experience they got this year,” he concluded.
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Why did MS Dhoni not play IPL 2026?
MS Dhoni missed the entire IPL 2026 season due to multiple injuries, completely disrupting his comeback plans. The former CSK skipper initially suffered a serious calf strain before the tournament began, ruling him out of the initial stages of the competition.
While Dhoni was reportedly recovering and preparing for a comeback later in the season, he suffered another setback after suffering a sore thumb during a practice session.
Repeated injury concerns eventually forced the CSK management and Dhoni himself to adopt a cautious approach. Despite efforts to regain fitness ahead of the crucial final home match against CSK Sunrisers HyderabadReportedly, Dhoni realized that he was still not 100 percent physically ready to compete.
Furthermore, it was also reported that Dhoni decided not to take away opportunities from young players whom CSK was trying to groom for the future; Therefore, he decided to leave the match.
Karthik Sharma obviously impressed me a lot – Ruturaj Gaikwad
Ruturaj Gaikwad He also spoke positively about the many young players who have stepped up during CSK’s transition phase following the departure of experienced names in recent years.
“Yeah, I mean, moving on from players like Ajinkya Rahane or, you know, Ambati Rayudu, we have many years of experience. Karthik has obviously impressed a lot. He has a lot of scope to grow, obviously a lot of areas to improve on. Urvil is again a player who is playing a full season for the first time. So, when you are playing a full season, you have a lot of expectations.”
“But obviously it’s good to have those games in everyone’s bag and obviously we’ll come back stronger next year,” he said.
Ruturaj Gaikwad reflects on tough IPL 2026 campaign
Gaikwad further admitted that IPL 2026 proved to be extremely difficult for CSK due to injuries and constant disruptions in team combinations.
“Well, tough start to the season, especially the hat-trick of defeats. And then after that, once we got that rhythm, obviously we found people playing in the right places, in the right combinations, everything started working. And then obviously, a few injuries again and again didn’t really help much, especially the absence of Jamie and another all-rounder in the form of Ramakrishna Ghosh made our playing 12 unstable,” he said. Said.
Gaikwad also highlighted how inexperienced the team actually was despite the public’s expectations being very high towards Chennai Super Kings every season.
He admitted, “A lot of people don’t really understand the fact that we are a young team, we are in a period of transition and there are not many players who are experienced enough, especially in the toughest competition.”
Gaikwad concluded, “We have figured out where we are lacking and of course we still have six wins to go and some great wins as well. We are really proud of the unit.”
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