The change of the ‘uncapped player’ rule ahead of the 2025 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) will push the former captain, MS Dhoni, of the Chennai Super Kings to get retained for the new season for a price of just four crores. This rule has stated that any Indian player whose last international game came five years ago can be retained as the uncapped player.
The last game for Dhoni came in 2019 during the World Cup, which qualifies him for the rule. This also means some of the other Indian pacers, like Mohit Sharma or Sandeep Sharma, whose last national game was nine years ago could be slotted in the position.
MS Dhoni, however, hasn’t expressed anything, on the development and whether he would be ready to play the next season of the competition. Retaining him at a lower cost ensures that the franchise will have a healthy purse going into the auction of the next season. He has a pivotal, both as a leader and brand of the team.
“MS Dhoni is that sort of a player”- Mohammad Kaif
The former Indian middle-order batter, Mohammad Kaif, who witnessed the career graph of MS Dhoni from a close distance, didn’t express any thoughts suggesting that the legacy of MS Dhoni warrants these sorts of changes in the rules.
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“We will get to see MS Dhoni playing again. He is fit, he is batting aggressively, and is good behind the gloves too. As long as he wants to play, the rules will keep getting changed. You got to change the rules or do whatever you want, to let MS Dhoni play if he wants to play, he is that big of a player and match-winner for CSK.” The former Indian payer expressed during a discussion on Star Sports.
The veteran was crystal clear in his remarks over the uncapped player rule but felt that the wicket-keeper batter has always maintained the better performance of the team as per requirements.
“If he’s fit and playing good, why not? Dhoni himself says he doesn’t need money. He has said that he will do what the team management wants. Yes, retaining him for INR 4 crore does look a little weird, but you have a chance to retain him, regardless.” Mohammad Kaif claimed.
The former Indian captain is the second-highest run-getter of the Chennai Super Kings in the history of the Indian Premier League (IPL) with 5118 runs in 258 games at an average of around 40 and a strike rate of nearly 140, shouldering on 23 half-centuries.
MS Dhoni has also captained the CSK franchise for five titles in the tournament, with the most recent one coming in 2023 against the Gujarat Titans (GT). But the speculations grew over his place in the team when he handed over the leadership duties to Ruturaj Gaikwad on the eve of the last season.
“Everyone knows the rule has been changed because of him. And why not? Dhoni is that sort of a player.” Kaif noted further.
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The CEO of the team, Kasi Vishwanath, has also highlighted that he has yet to meet the former captain of the side regarding his decision to play in the tournament and also touched on doing so in the upcoming few days. The deadline for the retention list to be submitted has been selected as October 31.
It will be interesting to see if the franchise is prepared to keep MS Dhoni, who is 43, for the next three editions of the tournament.