The defending champions, Chennai Super Kings (CSK), had their most forgettable season in the IPL history, not just in terms of wins and losses, but also in terms of how the season progressed, with the Ravindra Jadeja captaincy debacle being the most talked about thing in IPL 2022.
Former Pakistan cricketer Shoaib Akhtar slammed the Chennai management over the Jadeja incident a day after CSK was officially eliminated from the playoffs after losing to Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede Stadium.
CSK and MS Dhoni surprised fans by announcing Jadeja as the new captain before the season began. While the star all-rounder was praised for his new role, CSK struggled to win games, finishing last in the table.
In light of his deteriorating form, Jadeja opted to step down and relinquish captaincy back to Dhoni. A week later, an injury forced him to miss the entire season.
Speaking to Sportskeeda about the entire Jadeja captaincy fiasco, Akhtar believes CSK management was not serious about the choice, and that he still doesn't understand why the all-rounder was elected captain.
Dhoni's future at the franchise was also discussed, with the Pakistan cricket legend identifying a new role for the veteran wicketkeeper-batter.
"Chennai's management didn't look serious about this season. If Dhoni leaves, they are left with nothing. Now why did they suddenly give Jadeja the captaincy only they could explain. They need to come next season with a clear mind. The players they need should be retained.
If Dhoni wants to come as a mentor...he did the same for India (in 2021 T20 World Cup) and if he wants to continue playing for next two seasons then great. But if he does take up the role of a mentor or even the head coach and decides to take CSK from there on, it won't be a bad decision either," he said.
Chennai has two more games left in the season, against the Gujarat Titans and the Rajasthan Royals.
