A string of injuries within the Chennai Super Kings camp has left MS Dhoni with no choice but to carry on despite a serious injury of his own. The legendary Dhoni, who is 42, and is likely playing his final IPL season, is hurt and in pain due to a muscle tear, a primary reason behind him batting lower down in the order for CSK. A report in the Times of India suggests that Dhoni picked up the injury sometime during the ongoing season but the former captain remains fiercely determined to play through pain.
There's been plenty of chatter about Dhoni batting low for CSK, but the debate gained steam when he walked out to bat at No.9 during Sunday's game against Punjab Kings and was bowled first ball. The move was criticised left, right and centre by former India cricketers. While Irfan Pathan felt Dhoni was not doing CSK any good by batting so low, Harbhajan suggested that CSK might as well play an extra batter. As it turns out, neither was aware of the real picture.
Dhoni played the last IPL with an injured knee, although he got it operated immediately after CSK won the trophy. But while the knee has healed entirely, the muscle tear has cast uncertainty. Dhoni can do very little movement and cannot run for too long. And this is when the guy is still keeping wicket for 20 overs. It's also reported that even when batting in the nets, Dhoni only focuses on smashing the ball and not running much.
Even though the nature of the injury is not completely known, Dhoni has been advised rest by doctors. However, the former CSK captain is adamant about not taking a break and is consuming his medicines timely to ensure he is at the best possible version of himself. Dhoni is not too keen on resting because CSK have already lost Devon Conway – the team's second wicketkeeper – to injury. And with Deepak Chahar, Matheesha Pathirana and Mustafizur Rahman already out of the IPL 2024, Dhoni is compelled to stay on despite injury.
{{/usCountry}}Even though the nature of the injury is not completely known, Dhoni has been advised rest by doctors. However, the former CSK captain is adamant about not taking a break and is consuming his medicines timely to ensure he is at the best possible version of himself. Dhoni is not too keen on resting because CSK have already lost Devon Conway – the team's second wicketkeeper – to injury. And with Deepak Chahar, Matheesha Pathirana and Mustafizur Rahman already out of the IPL 2024, Dhoni is compelled to stay on despite injury.
{{/usCountry}}Additionally, Dhoni wants to oversee the proceedings, given Ruturaj Gaikwad's captaincy is still a work in progress. After starting the season on a promising note, CSK suffered five defeats in a row, temporarily hurting their Playoff chances. However, after a fine 28-run win over Punjab Kings in Dharamsala on Tuesday, they are back at No. 3 on the points table.
This could also be why Dhoni refused the controversial run/s while batting with Daryl Mitchell during last Wednesday's game against Punjab Kings. In all the time that Dhoni batted in IPL 2024, he did so right at the death, in the last one or two overs. If true, this is certainly the last of Dhoni in the IPL. Despite Suresh Raina publicly declaring on commentary that Dhoni will play at least another season after this, even the great MSD cannot escape the toll of repeated injuries, age and above all, father time.