MS Dhoni
CHENNAI: Prior to the IPL’s extravagant opening ceremony could turn heads, eyeballs were grabbed viciously followed by tongues that were set wagging frenetically over the future of talismanic Chennai Super Kings captain MS Dhoni, who relinquished captaincy just a day before the glitzy league was due to begin. Ever since he announced his retirement from the national team nearly four years ago, a frightful suspense has been continuing in perpetuity about how much longer he would don the robes of his beloved CSK, where he is deified to the point where anyone who musters enough courage to defy him would be doing so at his own peril.
Forget the A-list celebrities in the dense crowd training their sights on their favourite player cocooned from their vantage points, it is Dhoni’s critic who should employ bouncers to stave off grave harm to his well-being within the precincts of Chepauk stadium if he so much as dare utter a word that is deemed blasphemous. Who knows, the bouncers themselves may turn on the ‘apostate’ with all their formidable might, seemingly swayed by the groundswell of adulation Dhoni is showered with.
Such is the halo around Dhoni in Chennai that in the longing eyes of his legion of admirers, a future sans him in sporting gear is tantamount to a cricketing apocalypse. Truth be told, his announcement hasn’t evoked jaw-dropping astonishment, for given his age, he will turn 43 this July, this poignant day was snapping at the heels of the Super Kings’ management. Besides, he had been beset by a dodgy pair of knees for some time now which again is not entirely unexpected considering he plays no other form of cricket barring the IPL and the onerous task of keeping wicket during the oppressive Chennai summer has taken a toll on his body and limbs.
This is not for the first time that Dhoni has abdicated his Chennai ‘throne’ in a characteristically low-key manner, as just a couple of years ago, after leading his team to a fourth IPL triumph, he chose to hand over the leadership baton to Ravindra Jadeja. Whether that was a well thought-out move or one that was decided in haste, it went pear-shaped from the outset with Dhoni swiftly being reinstated as the skipper midway through the season.
As for the new man at the helm, Ruturaj Gaikwad, his predecessor’s towering and inspiring presence in the field would do wonders to his confidence and should soothe his frayed nerves in the event of things not quite working out the way he intended. Gaikwad will be secure in the knowledge that he has the luxury of falling back on someone who has won five IPLs and that wealth of experience will only benefit him immensely in moments of crisis.
With regard to Dhoni’s future as a player, it may all boil down to how well the side performs this season under Gaikwad and it will hinge on his own performances too, even if they are only cameos. Sooner or later, the Super Kings’ hierarchy must brace for his ‘final’ act on the field and we can only venture into the realm of conjecture as to how that agonising moment would be received by the knowledgeable Chennai crowd. They know very well that he is a tough act to follow.