Indian skipper Rohit Sharma welcomed MS Dhoni to the club after the latter stepped down as captain of the defending champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK). Rohit and Dhoni are the only captains to lead their respective franchises to five IPL titles. Rohit posted a photo of himself with Dhoni during Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 with a handshake emoji.
Former Indian cricketer Gautam Gambhir is the only other player to win two or more IPL trophies as captain.
“MS Dhoni has handed over Chennai Super Kings’ captaincy to Ruturaj Gaikwad ahead of the start of TATA IPL 2024. Ruturaj has been an integral part of Chennai Super Kings since 2019 and has played 52 matches in IPL during this period. The team looks forward to the upcoming season,” CSK said in a statement on March 21.
Dhoni is yet to release a statement on relinquishing the captaincy of the Chennai-based franchise. Gaikwad will make his IPL captaincy debut against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) on March 22 in Chennai.
Fleming was ready for Dhoni to take a step back
CSK head coach Stephen Fleming said that in 2022 they were not ready for Dhoni to give up the role but this time it was different.
"(The) last time MS (had) left captaincy, (it) was shocking to us and we weren't aware that MS would step down. But this time we knew," Fleming said.
"We have been working hard to prepare leaders. We have been slow on life after MS Dhoni. But trusting the youngsters has paid off well for us. I have already had a word with the youngsters like Rutu (Gaikwad) about leadership and captaincy. It is a great opportunity for him to lead the team," he added.
MI vs CSK clash date yet to be released
In the initial phase of IPL 2024, CSK and Mumbai Indians (MI) will not lock horns as the full schedule is yet to be released. However, this is the first time Dhoni and Rohit will play against each other in IPL as a player instead of donning the captaincy hat.
Rohit will play his first game of the season under the leadership of Hardik Pandya against Shubman Gill’s Gujarat Titans (GT) in Ahmedabad on March 24.
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