MS Dhoni has quietly accumulated more than one lakh shares in the Chennai Super Kings franchise, with those shares changing hands through private off-market transactions rather than any publicly announced deal. The development has emerged even as CSK formally denied that any ownership discussions with the former captain had ever taken place.
According to reports, Dhoni’s holding of one lakh-plus shares is a small slice of the franchise’s broader equity structure. The public collectively owns upward of 30 crore shares, which amounts to nearly 40 per cent of CSK’s total share capital. The Srinivasan family commands a majority position, holding in excess of 55 per cent of the franchise. At the valuation at which the IPL franchise last changed hands, above Rs 16,600 crore, Dhoni’s personal holding is estimated to be worth somewhere between Rs 2.6 crore and Rs 3 crore.
What were the reported stake negotiations between Dhoni and CSK?
Cricbuzz indicated that Dhoni had opened discussions by seeking a 25 per cent stake in the franchise. CSK’s management came back with successive counter-proposals of 3 per cent, 4 per cent and then 5.5 per cent. Dhoni is said to have scaled back his position, first to 20 per cent and then to 18 per cent, but the two sides could not bridge the gap. Crucially, every exchange was verbal; no written proposal or formal agreement was put on paper by either party.
How did CSK officially respond to the stake reports?
CSK CEO Kasi Viswanathan addressed the reports publicly on August 30, rejecting the suggestion that Dhoni had ever approached the franchise with a formal ownership request.
“MS has never asked us about it. We never discussed the matter. We also don’t have any information about him having discussed this with Mr N Srinivasan either,” Viswanathan was quoted as saying.
On a separate front, CSK management is expected to convene around September 22, the date Dhoni is due back from the United States, to finalise the appointment of a new head coach. The franchise has reportedly identified an overseas candidate for the position, though that individual is understood to be in parallel discussions with at least one other IPL franchise.
