Former India and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) all-rounder Irfan Pathan has shared his opinion on the CSK captaincy conundrum involving MS Dhoni and Ravindra Jadeja. Jadeja recently handed over the captaincy back to Dhoni, despite being made captain himself days before IPL 2022 commenced.
CSK had shocked its fans and cricket community in general as they announced that Ravindra Jadeja would be captaining the CSK franchise in the IPL 2022 in place of MS Dhoni. However, with the yellow brigade losing 6 out of their first 8 matches, Jadeja decided to hand over the captaincy back to Dhoni to focus on his own performances.
And Dhoni marked his return to captaincy with a comfortable win over Sunrisers Hyderabad at the MCA Stadium in Pune on Sunday.
Pathan, who has been part of CSK, believes Jadeja should've been a part of the auction if Dhoni had already decided to hand over the reins to the all-rounder.
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“Of course, I was surprised (by CSK's decision). They made Jadeja the captain just two days before the start of this year's IPL... which was also a surprise. Because if Dhoni had made up his mind to leave the captaincy, to-be captain Jadeja should've been involved in the auction. If Dhoni's exit was a last-moment decision, it means Jadeja wasn't involved in the auction. And Jadeja is captaining for the first time despite playing in the IPL for years,” Irfan told Jatin Sapru on the latter's YouTube channel.
"Chennai Super Kings are one of the best franchises as they take good care of their players. Every player on the squad remains equal for this franchise. The inconsistent decision-making is a surprising factor for me," he added.
Pathan further said that CSK retained Jadeja ahead of MS Dhoni before the IPL 2022 auction for ₹16 crores. He felt that CSK wanted to invest in him and wanted him to be captain and cited how Rashid Khan left SRH because they were not willing to make him their first retention.
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"He was retained ahead of Dhoni. CSK had thought of investing in him as No. 1 retention because they wanted him to be the captain as well. Rashid Khan didn't stay in Sunrisers Hyderabad as he wasn't the first-choice retention.
Even if it's his own decision to step down, Jadeja should've talked with the franchise. Ruturaj also didn't perform in the first few games of the season. But he was backed by the team management. Jadeja should've also continued. Maybe he would've got 2-3 wins and his confidence would've skyrocketed. But I want to see how Jadeja the player fares this season after his exit from captaincy," he further added.
