MS Dhoni stepped down from the captaincy of the Chennai Super Kings on Thursday (24 March). Taking his place as CSK captain will be Ravindra Jadeja just days ahead of the latest season of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
The right-arm wicket keeper-batsman’s decision has come as surprise to many. The team are set to play their first IPL match against Kolkata Knight Riders in Mumbai on Saturday.
Dhoni, was brought by the CSK as their icon player in 2008. Under Dhoni, Chennai Super Kings have won the IPL trophy four times – in 2010, 2011, 2018 and 2021. The team have emerged as one of the most consistent performers in the IPL.
As ‘Thala’ Dhoni steps back to let Jadeja assume the captaincy, here are some facts about his performance records:
As captain, Dhoni had a win percentage of 59.60, the second-best after Rohit Sharma. Under his captaincy, the team won 121 out of the 204 matches they played. Dhoni is also the fourth-best player in terms of most sixes in the IPL. The right-arm batter has scored 219 sixes in 220 matches till now. He is also the highest run-getter presently for CSK, with 4,172 runs from 166 innings.
The former India skipper has often led from the front and enthralled spectators with his power-packed performances. Here’s how MS Dhoni played in all four editions of the IPL that CSK won:
2010
Dhoni had already led his team to the playoffs twice earlier. But the third time was truly the charm for CSK as the team managed to beat Mumbai Indians in a thrilling final to lift the trophy for the first time. Dhoni scored 287 runs in the tournament with two half-centuries to his name.
Dhoni and Raina scored some crucial runs to help the team put up 168 on the scoreboard. MSD’s brilliant captaincy saw him give the bowl to Shadab Jakati to utilise Sachin Tendulkar’s weakness for left-arm spin and dismiss the veteran batsman. He also helped set up a fielder at long-off to forced Kieron Pollard to hit a shot there, thus dismissing the dangerous hitter.
2011
Dhoni won his team the second consecutive trophy, this time by defeating Royal Challengers Bangalore. The CSK skipper scored 392 runs in the tournament at a strike rate of 158. His highest score in the 2011 IPL also came against RCB, when the wicket-keeper batter scored 70 at the M Chinnaswamy stadium in Bengaluru.
2018
Chennai Super Kings beat Sunrisers Hyderabad to win IPL 2018 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Sportzpics
After 2011, CSK next won the title in 2018. Dhoni led the side with his usual calm demeanour and his steady presence helped the team lift the title for the third time. This IPL also saw MSD give some of his best performances. The right-hand batter scored 455 runs at a strike rate of 150 in the 2018 IPL, including three half-centuries.
2021
Chennai Super Kings beat the Kolkata Knight Riders by 27 runs to claim their fourth IPL title. SportzPics
After a lackluster performance in 2020, CSK were back with a vengeance under Dhoni’s leadership. While Dhoni himself struggled to score runs, his able stewardship of the team won him much appreciation. CSK beat Kolkata Knight Riders in the final to claim the IPL trophy for the fourth time.
With Thala stepping down from captaincy this time, let’s see how CSK will perform under Jadeja.
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