MS Dhoni, the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain became only the second captain to win the Indian Premier League five times after Rohit Sharma of Mumbai Indians (MI), when CSK defeated Gujarat Titans (GT) in the final of the IPL 2023 on Monday.
The fans were given a special gift by Dhoni after the IPL 2023 title win, as the CSK skipper said he isn’t be retiring and would be back in time for IPL 2024.
“Looking for an answer? This is the best time to announce my retirement. But the amount of love I have received all over. The easy thing would be to walk away from here, but the harder thing would be working hard for 9 months and try to play another IPL. It would be a gift from me, won’t be easy on the body,” said Dhoni after winning the title.
However, there might be questions on that, as Dhoni was seen dealing with a left-knee injury throughout the IPL 2023 which led to him batting at no.8 most of times and was also seen struggling to run in between wickets.
MS Dhoni Seen Strapping His Knee Before Coming Out To Bat In IPL 2023 Final
Stephen Fleming, the head coach of CSK, disclosed last month that Dhoni had been “nursing a knee injury” that had prevented him from dashing between the wickets. The 41-year-old Dhoni was spotted donning a kneecap during CSK’s preseason camp.
“He (Dhoni) is nursing a knee injury, which you can see in some of his movement, which is hindering him somewhat. But still what you saw (against RR on April 12) is a great player for us. His fitness has always been very professional,” Fleming had said in a press conference.
And now the dedication of MS Dhoni to this game of cricket and his team, the Chennai Super Kings was confirmed, when a fan shared a video of the CSK skipper before coming out to bat and he was seen putting a protective strap over his injured knee.
Here is the video:
MS Dhoni came to bat even with this injured knee?
His commitment towards the game? pic.twitter.com/9AL8BQGvf5
— ♚ (@balltamperrer) May 31, 2023