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A lot of eyebrows were raised when Chennai Super Kings announced their retentions for IPL 2022. Much to everyone's surprise, it was Ravindra Jadeja who was retained for a sum of INR 16 crores, which made him the most expensive CSK retention ahead of MS Dhoni (INR 12 crores), Moeen Ali (INR 8 crores) and Ruturaj Gaikwad (INR 6 crores).
Following that, there were rumours that the franchise took this step as Jadeja was going to be CSK's next captain, with MSD reportedly planning to hand over the captaincy duties to the all-rounder mid-way through IPL 2022. It was being said that Thala is pondering over this move to ensure smooth transition of reigns of one of the most successful franchises.
However, a CSK official recently broke the silence on these reports and revealed that there have been no conversations yet on the situation. "There have been no discussions regarding the matter. We will cross the bridge when the time comes. Dhoni is our captain. He is the first player of CSK and when he decides to step down, he will make that call. We are now focused on the auction," a CSK source told InsideSport.IN.
Reflecting on the various reports of MSD retiring mid-season and ending his IPL career, a source close to development told InsideSport.IN that none of these are true.
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He said, "See, you are talking about Dhoni, who has set examples after examples. He left the top retention spot for Jadeja and has been one of the first to arrive for CSK camp every time. He is fit, led the team to another title. Why would he retire mid-season? All of those discussions will take place at the right time. Right now, his focus is on auction.
MS Dhoni is someone who has always taken his decisions on his own, without anyone else even getting a hint about it before the announcement. Hence, it is likely that no one really knows right now what is going in Thala's head, which makes the upcoming season of IPL really intriguing and exciting. Notably, the 40-year-old is currently focused on upcoming mega auction, having recently landed in Chennai to discuss the strategies with the management.