"Dhoni said, 'I will tell you before October 31'" - CSK CEO admits former captain is yet to confirm IPL 2025 plans
Chennai Super Kings (CSK) CEO Kasi Viswanathan admitted that MS Dhoni has not yet confirmed his availability for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season. He, however, expressed hope that the cricket legend would feature in the next season of the T20 league.
Dhoni led CSK to victory in the IPL 2023 season and handed over captaincy of the franchise to Ruturaj Gaikwad for the IPL 2024 edition. Chennai, however, failed to qualify for the playoffs, going down to Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in their last league match.
Ever since the conclusion of the tournament, there has been suspense over whether Dhoni will return to the IPL for one more season. There will be a mega auction ahead of the 2025 season and, as per reports, October 31 is the last date for all 10 franchises to confirm their retention list.
CSK CEO Viswanathan has made it clear that the franchise is keen on Dhoni featuring in next year's IPL, but also admitted that the former India captain is yet to get back to them about his final decision. India Today quoted a report from Sports Vikatan in which Viswanathan commented:
"We also want Dhoni to play in the CSK team. But Dhoni has not confirmed it to us yet. Dhoni said, 'I will tell you before October 31.' We hope that he will play."
If he gives his go-ahead, the 43-year-old former CSK skipper can be retained by the franchise as an uncapped player for ₹4 crore. Since he hasn't played international cricket since 2019, the keeper-batter qualifies as an 'uncapped Indian player' as per IPL regulations announced for 2025-2027.
"We can expect MS Dhoni to be playing T10 when he makes up his mind" - T10 Global Sports chairman
Even as the uncertainty over Dhoni's IPL 2025 participation continues, Shaji Ul Mulk, founder and chairman of T10 Global Sports, reckons that the Indian legend can feature in T10 leagues as well in the future.
"Absolutely, I think outside of the top level of international cricketers playing, current India internationals are not allowed to play outside of the Indian Premier League. The recently retired players, almost all the big names of India, have come to play T10. So yes, we can expect MS Dhoni to be playing T10 when he makes up his mind," Shaji told ANI.
Among former Indian cricketers, the likes of Suresh Raina, Robin Uthappa, and Irfan Pathan have had a taste of T10 cricket. The upcoming edition of Abu Dhabi T10 is scheduled to take place from November 21 to December 2.