Former Chennai Super Kings captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s first match of the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL) could be against the Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede Stadium on April 23. According to CSK sources, 44-year-old Dhoni, who is on the sidelines after suffering a calf strain at the pre-season camp, is now close to regaining full fitness. CSK’s next match is an away fixture against Sunrisers Hyderabad, but there is no confirmation if Dhoni will travel with the team.
CSK is eighth out of 10 teams on the points table, winning two of their five games. The Ruturaj Gaikwad-captain team lost three in a row before winning their last two home matches, against Delhi Capitals and Kolkata Knight Riders.
Dhoni has been following CSK’s home matches from the team hotel but has been seen at practice sessions. When facing throwdowns, he has shown no discomfort.
On the eve of their last match against Kolkata Knight Riders, Dhoni had a stint with batting coach Mike Hussey, but didn’t face any of the frontline bowlers. He also spent time with left-arm wrist spinner Noor Ahmad before the KKR match.
“MS (Dhoni) had a long chat with him in one of the practise sessions, getting his leg break to go. So I think it was very helpful for him and the results were there to show,” CSK’s bowling coach Sridharan Sriram said.
When facing throwdowns, Dhoni has been able to hit the ball without discomfort.
Having bounced back to winning ways, the franchise will have to find a spot for Dhoni. CSK lack batting depth with their frontline bowlers batting from No.8 onwards.
CSK have all their bases covered in batting and the only possible spot for Dhoni could be Sarfaraz Khan’s. The Mumbai batsman has been amongst CSK’s brightest spots this season. But in the most recent game, against Kolkata Knight Riders on Tuesday, he struggled to up the run rate, making just 23 runs from 18 deliveries.
The other option is to make Dhoni play as an Impact Player, which seems the safer option as he can be replaced with a bowler later on.
