MS Dhoni reveals post-retirement plans: I want to spend a bit more time with the Army
Chennai Super Kings captain MS Dhoni has shed light on his post-retirement plans, saying he wants to spend more time with the Indian Army.
Dhoni called time on his international career in 2020 but is still going strong in the Indian Premier League. Dhoni will be leading CSK in what could be his final season in the IPL. Last season, he captained the Chennai-based franchise to their fifth IPL title by defeating Hardik Pandya-led Gujarat Titans in the final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
Following the 2023 season, CSK let go of eight players ahead of the IPL 2024 retention deadline. They went ahead and signed six players, namely Daryl Mitchell (Rs 14 crore), Sameer Rizvi (Rs 8.4 crore), Shardul Thakur (Rs 4 crore), Rachin Ravindra (Rs 1.8 crore), Mustafizur Rahman (Rs 2 crore), Avanish Rao Aravelly (Rs 20 lakh).
Answering a question by a fan at an event, Dhoni said he would like to spend a bit more time with the Army after he retires. Following the win against GT in last season’s final, Dhoni announced that he would continue to play for at least one more year.
“I have never thought about it. I am still playing cricket. IPL I am still playing. It will be very interesting to see what I end up doing after cricket. I think for sure, I want to spend a bit more time with the Army because last few years I have not been able to do that,” said Dhoni.
Chennai initially attempted to replace MS Dhoni by appointing Ravindra Jadeja as captain in IPL 2022, just before their opening match. Despite this move, the five-time champions struggled, languishing at the bottom of the table with only one win in the first seven matches. Dhoni then took over in 2023 and led them to the title in Ahmedabad.
CSK SQUAD FOR IPL 2024
MS Dhoni (c), Moeen Ali, Deepak Chahar, Devon Conway, Tushar Deshpande, Shivam Dube, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, Ravindra Jadeja, Ajay Mandal, Mukesh Choudhary, Matheesha Pathirana, Ajinkya Rahane, Shaik Rasheed, Mitchell Santner, Simarjeet Singh, Nishant Sindhu, Prashant Solanki, Maheesh Theekshana, Rachin Ravindra, Shardul Thakur, Daryl Mitchell, Sameer Rizvi, Mustafizur Rahman, Avanish Rao Aravelly.