Home
Chennai: Chennai Super Kings' (CSK) captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni on Saturday reiterated that he will play his last T20 game in Chennai. Dhoni also said that he doesn’t know whether it will be next year or in five years' time. Dhoni, who led CSK to their fourth Indian Premier League (IPL) title last month in the UAE, had earlier made it clear that he would be wearing his favourite yellow jersey for at least one more season and the fans would certainly see him playing a ‘farewell game’ at their beloved Chepauk.
“I have always planned my cricket”
"I have always planned my cricket. The last game I played was in Ranchi. The last home game in ODI was at my hometown in Ranchi. So, hopefully, my last T20 will be in Chennai. Whether it's next year or in 5 years' time, we don't really know," captain cool said during CSK's IPL victory celebration here.
“We missed two years of IPL”
Speaking in the presence of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin, legendary all-rounder Kapil Dev and BCCI secretary Jay Shah, the 40-year-old said that CSK's fan following has kept the team going even during the two years when they missed the league.
"Overall, it is the fan following which CSK has got, it goes much beyond Tamil Nadu, it goes beyond the borders of India. Wherever we play -- be it in Bengaluru, Johannesburg or Dubai, we have got the support. Even during the lean patch, we missed two years of IPL and that was the period CSK was most talked about on social media," he added.
“We came back very strongly”
Dhoni stressed on believing in the process and said it helped in coming back strongly in IPL 2021 after a nightmarish run in 2020 when the team did not qualify for the playoffs for the first time.
"We had a very good run from 2008 when it came to franchisee cricket. But it became interesting in 2020, that was the first season when we did not qualify for the next stage of the IPL.It gave us a chance to test the real character of the franchise. It gave us an opportunity to earn the respect of the players and the fans. Because we said we believed in the process not in the result and the result didn't go in our favour in 2020. We earned the respect of the men, that's what they said. This is what they do, they walk the talk... We came back very strongly and we were able to win the title this year," the iconic skipper added.
“It is a great stage where I can thank all”
Thanking his fellow cricketers and BCCI's administrators for their efforts, the former Indian skipper said that he is thankful to all the administrators and ex-cricketers for their contribution towards cricket.
"It is a great stage where I can thank all ex-cricketers seated here, fellow cricketers and also the BCCI administrators for their contribution towards cricket. Cricket has changed over the years, format has changed, but due to them, we are standing here and cricket moved forward," Dhoni concluded.
