For the first time since the IPL began in 2008, and Suresh Raina.
For a couple of seasons, when they failed to make the play-offs in successive editions, appeared to be stuck in a time warp while Other franchises moved on, embracing a new attacking game plan all the way down the batting order.
And now, after going after youth at the auction, CSK are now in uncharted territory without their Thala, who will miss at least two weeks of action due to a calf strain. Having chosen to stay back in for rehab, the face of the franchise would be absent from , as they take on the inaugural champions.
While Dhoni missing a tie would have been a huge blow in times gone by, there is no anxiety in Chennai’s ranks this time. If anything, this could well be a signal for the franchise to move on from the veteran, who has refused to call time on his career even at the age of 44. From an ageing lion, he has become the elephant in the room. But the franchise can finally have a glimpse at life after Dhoni without having to worry about antagonising the core fan base. Though Dhoni has been restricting his role as a batsman over the last couple of seasons, not moving on from him was exposed as a mistake last year. In a batting line-up that was deprived of firepower until Dewald Brevis joined as a replacement player, they had no option but to rely on Dhoni, who went at a strike rate of 135.17. Finishing at the bottom of the table was a fair reflection of how far they had fallen behind.
If the franchise seemed less prepared when he passed on the captaincy first to Ravindra Jadeja and then to Ruturaj Gaikwad two seasons ago, this time the transition isn’t going to witness any turbulence. To take over the keeping gloves, there is Sanju Samson, who has been brought from . To take care of the power-hitting, CSK have assembled the likes of Brevis – who won’t start at Guwahati with a side strain – Kartik Sharma and Prashant Veer.
More importantly, it is now looking more and more like a team in the image of Gaikwad and Stephen Fleming rather than Dhoni’s. Last season, when he had to take over the captaincy after Gaikwad was injured, Dhoni had left the choice of picking the XII on Fleming. The changes that CSK brought in midway through the season were done with an eye on 2026 and as Gaikwad himself revealed, Dhoni has stayed out of discussions and planning.
“He doesn’t attend team discussions himself; he wants Fleming and me to take things forward. He tells us, ‘Even if you ask for my advice, you don’t necessarily have to follow it’. He believes our ideas should drive the team. He isn’t focused on what is ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ – if he sees a problem, he just focuses on how to solve it,” Gaikwad said.
Gearing up for a fresh start, injuries haven’t been kind to CSK. Already missing Nathan Ellis for the whole season, CSK’s big miss in Guwahati would be Brevis. But unlike last season when they didn’t know whom to turn to, the good news is that they have options now. With Samson, Gaikwad and Ayush Mhatre locked as their top three, and as the floater, Chennai have to choose between Urvil Patel, Sarfaraz Khan, Kartik and Prashant for at least two slots in the middle order.
It would be interesting to see who the team management uses as their four overseas picks. In place of Brevis, they have Australian Matt Short as back-up, but he has himself just recovered from a niggle. With Matt Henry and Noor Ahmad being sure starters in the bowling unit, whether Chennai turn to Jamie Overton or Akeal Hosein could well determine the balance of the XII.
