Suresh Raina has made a major statement on his future in the Indian Premier League (IPL) on Friday (June 9). Raina stated he won't be a part of the league next season if Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain MS Dhoni decides to call time on his IPL career after the 2021 edition.

Dhoni and Raina have played for CSK since 2008 as captain and vice-captain respectively. In 2016 and 2017, the franchise was suspended which forced the players to move to Pune Supergiant and Gujarat Lions for two seasons.

Talking to News 24 Sports, Raina said, “If Dhoni bhai doesn’t play next season, I too won’t play. We’ve been playing since 2008 (for CSK)… if we win this year then I’ll convince him to play next year too. I’ll try my best. If he will not play, then I don’t think I will play for any IPL team.”

The duo share a strong bond on and off the field having played together for most of their international and IPL careers, and it showed when Raina decided to retire from international cricket few moments after MS Dhoni announced his retirement on August 15, 2020.

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Raina feels he has 4-5 years of cricket left in him but only wishes to play for CSK in the cash-rich T20 league. “I have four-five years left in me. We have the IPL this year, and then two more teams next year. But I think I’ll play only for CSK till I play. I hope we do well this year,” he said.

CSK was in the second spot on the points table of the currently suspended IPL 2021 with five wins from seven games. The remaining part of the season will be played in UAE from September-October.

Dhoni and Raina did not find their best form with the bat when the first half of the season was held in India, and will look to set that right in UAE.