Chennai Super Kings (CSK) went down against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in a battle for the final IPL 2024 playoffs spot at the Chinnaswamy Stadium last week.
Speculation over MS Dhoni's retirement is rife ever since CSK's elimination from the cash-rich league. While the 42-year-old has kept his cards close to heart, many experts believe that the veteran wicketkeeper has already played his last IPL game.
Meanwhile, Dhoni is enjoying some time off from cricket after a daunting IPL season. He was seen riding his vintage bike on the streets of Ranchi, two days after CSK’s campaign came to an end.
Moreover, a video of Dhoni went viral on social media, in which the former CSK captain can be seen boarding an economy class flight from Bengaluru to Ranchi, leaving his co-passengers awestruck.
In the clip, Dhoni was seen putting his luggage in the overhead compartment and then occupying his seat. The co-passengers captured those moments in their phones and then gave a round of applause to Dhoni.
Here’s the video:
In a recent public event, MS Dhoni shared the secret of CSK’s success. He revealed that once new players enter the squad, the first assessment is based on whether that player fits into the CSK environment and, if not, what measure can lead the player in that direction. And if all else fails, there is no option but to release the player irrespective of his reputation.
“We get a very good player in our team, but he is drastically different to our environment. So what do we look for? We want him to take that one step towards the team’s goal. We are happy to move three steps towards him, but let’s say if that’s not the case, the second-best thing is, okay, you keep doing what you are doing, but don’t disrupt us. So that’s the second-best option.
“The third is you have to let him go. So, these are three scenarios because at the end of the day, whether it’s business or sport, we want to do well. So, one of the jobs of the think tank is to get the most out of the individual. If he is very good for the team, I will have to try whatever different ways to make sure that he’s an asset to the team. But he also needs to be willing to take that step. if he doesn’t take the first step, fair enough. I have a second in line and a third in line, but at some point in time, I can’t.
“I don’t want the whole team to adapt to the individual because that is wrong. So, you have to let him go. He may be the greatest player, but you have to let him go and somebody else, you know, will come and take his place. He may not be as good as him, but he will help, you know, the team perform better," said Dhoni.
MS Dhoni, who stepped down as CSK captain ahead of the IPL 2024 season, also mentioned that having fear and pressure helps you make right decisions.
"Fear is very important. You need to have that fear because unless, if I don't have fear, I can never be brave. I can never be courageous, you know. So I always felt that fear is important, that the pressure is important because that helps me take the right decision, keeping everything in mind. If I have fear, you know, a lot of people talk about I'm fearless.
"If you are fearless, then you will be reckless. Because if I don't have fear, I won't respect the normal thing. If I don't have fear of height let's say nothing. So, it hardly matters when I am walking on the road, when I am walking on the rope, you know. So I felt all these things are important for the development of an individual," Dhoni remarked.
