{"id":60523,"date":"2025-03-24T09:23:55","date_gmt":"2025-03-24T09:23:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/earlypostdaily.com\/?p=60523"},"modified":"2025-03-24T09:23:55","modified_gmt":"2025-03-24T09:23:55","slug":"ms-dhoni-focused-on-reinventing-himself-denies-backroom-role-in-csk-captaincy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/earlypostdaily.com\/index.php\/2025\/03\/24\/ms-dhoni-focused-on-reinventing-himself-denies-backroom-role-in-csk-captaincy\/","title":{"rendered":"MS Dhoni Focused on Reinventing Himself, Denies Backroom Role in CSK Captaincy"},"content":{"rendered":"

Rejecting speculation that he is the behind-the-scenes decision-maker<\/strong> for Chennai Super Kings (CSK)<\/strong> despite stepping down as captain, Mahendra Singh Dhoni<\/strong> emphasized that his focus remains on adapting his game<\/strong> to stay relevant in the IPL<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Speaking to JioStar<\/strong> after CSK\u2019s four-wicket victory over Mumbai Indians<\/strong> in their opening match of IPL 2024, Dhoni<\/strong> reflected on team dynamics under new skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad<\/strong>, his personal approach to the evolving T20 format, and the rise of regional commentary<\/strong> in the tournament.<\/p>\n

Staying Relevant in Modern T20 Cricket<\/strong><\/h3>\n

With the batting approach in T20s evolving<\/strong>, Dhoni acknowledged the need to adjust his game:<\/p>\n

“Batsmen are now taking more risks while playing proper cricketing shots. You see reverse scoops, sweeps, and reverse sweeps against fast bowlers. I am no different; I have to adapt as well. This is what is required of me, given my batting position. You have to stay relevant,”<\/em> Dhoni said.<\/p>\n

Comparing T20 cricket from 2008 to now<\/strong>, he highlighted how pitch conditions in India have improved<\/strong>, making them more batter-friendly<\/strong> than before.<\/p>\n

Gaikwad in Full Control as CSK Captain<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The five-time IPL-winning captain<\/strong> clarified that Ruturaj Gaikwad<\/strong> is fully in charge of CSK, contrary to speculation that Dhoni is making decisions in the background.<\/p>\n

“Ruturaj has been with us for a long time. He is calm and composed\u2014key qualities for a leader. Before the season, I told him, ‘If I give you advice, you don\u2019t have to follow it. I will try to stay away as much as possible.’<\/em><\/p>\n

“Throughout the season, people speculated that I was making the decisions, but the reality is that Ruturaj was responsible for 99% of the calls. Bowling changes, field placements\u2014those were all his decisions. I was just helping him when needed, and he did a brilliant job managing the team,”<\/em> Dhoni added.<\/p>\n

Bond with Virat Kohli<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Dhoni also spoke about his long-standing relationship with Virat Kohli<\/strong>, which evolved from a captain-young player dynamic to a deep friendship<\/strong> over the years.<\/p>\n

“It was always an honest exchange of ideas\u2014discussing if a certain approach was right or if any adjustments were needed. Over time, as we kept interacting, we became friends. Even today, we share that bond, but there is always a line of respect between a senior and a junior.”<\/em><\/p>\n

Now that neither of them is leading a team, Dhoni noted that they get more time to talk before matches<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Love for Regional Commentary in IPL<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Dhoni praised IPL broadcasters for introducing regional commentary<\/strong>, saying it provides new perspectives<\/strong> on the game.<\/p>\n

“Listening to commentary offers an outsider\u2019s view, sparking new ideas that can be evaluated with intelligence and data. I haven’t heard much regional commentary, but I know that Bhojpuri commentary is highly energetic. It reminds me of old-school radio commentary, where the commentators were very involved. I find that very interesting,”<\/em> he said.<\/p>\n

At 43<\/strong>, Dhoni continues to evolve with the game, not just as a cricketer but also as a mentor and strategist<\/strong>, ensuring CSK remains a dominant force in the IPL.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Rejecting speculation that he is the behind-the-scenes decision-maker for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) despite stepping down as captain, Mahendra Singh Dhoni emphasized that his focus remains…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":60524,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-60523","post","has-post-thumbnail","category-national"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/earlypostdaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60523","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/earlypostdaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/earlypostdaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/earlypostdaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/earlypostdaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=60523"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/earlypostdaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60523\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":60525,"href":"https:\/\/earlypostdaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60523\/revisions\/60525"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/earlypostdaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/60524"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/earlypostdaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=60523"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/earlypostdaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=60523"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/earlypostdaily.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=60523"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}