MS Dhoni is back from where he left in the previous season of the Indian Premier League. The Chennai Super Kings captain had a good outing in his first net session ahead of IPL 2024. He hit the balls in the middle of the bat, and his teammates watched with awe.
The right-handed batter will return to competitive cricket for the first time since winning the IPL trophy in 2023 when the defending champions play with Royal Challengers Bangalore on March 22.
He underwent surgery for his knee issue last year, and after recovering, the veteran recently landed in Chennai to prepare for the new season.
Dhoni looked confident and didn’t attempt too many big shots but looked in touch while playing drives. He handled a yorker bowled by a throwdown specialist.
Dhoni batted against the spinners to get used to the conditions in Chepauk, as the tracks would suit them.
It will be interesting to see how Dhoni performs in the crucial matches for the franchise. He is expected to bat in the lower order and perfectly play the finisher’s role.
CSK SQUAD FOR IPL 2024
Batters: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shaik Rasheed, Ajinkya Rahane, Sameer Rizvi.
All-rounders: Moeen Ali, Shivam Dube, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, Ravindra Jadeja, Mitchell Santner, Ajay Mandal, Nishant Sindhu, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Shardul Thakur
Wicketkeepers: MS Dhoni, Devon Conway, Avanish Rao Aravelly.
Bowlers: Deepak Chahar, Tushar Deshpande, Matheesha Pathirana, Simarjeet Singh, Prashant Solanki, Mahesh Theekshana, Mustafizur Rahman, Mukesh Choudhary.