Chennai Super Kings are all set to square off with Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the opening encounter of the IPL 2024. This match will be held at MA Chidambaram Stadium on Saturday. This season will be very important for the five-time champions.
Firstly, they will look to defend their title. Secondly, they will also have to find out who will be the next man to lead CSK in 2024. MS Dhoni is likely to announce his retirement after the upcoming season. The 41-year-old confirmed during the final against GT in 2023 that he will play one more season.
Hence, we might see the last of the CSK skipper as a player. But the question for the most successful franchise is who will carry on his legacy. They have already tried Ravindra Jadeja in 2022, which totally backfired on them. So will Jadeja be the captain again?
However, former CSK superstar Suresh Raina has his own views. In a discussion on Jio Cinema, Raina reckons that the coming season will be more important for CSK than MS Dhoni. But it will be MSD who knows who can be his deputy.
Raina said, “The biggest question is who will be their next captain? Even if Dhoni stepped away as captain, who does he have his eyes on? I think Ruturaj Gaikwad will be a good option.” Gaikwad doesn’t have captaincy experience in the IPL, but he has led Maharashtra at the domestic level and also led India at the international level in a few series, including a gold medal win at the Asian Games 2023.
Gaikwad has been part of the CSK since 2020 and is a bankable player at the top. There will not be a surprise if Gaikwad gets the captaincy job. Furthermore, Raina also said that he wants MS Dhoni to continue leading the team for another 2–3 years. Dhoni equaled Rohit Sharma’s IPL record for five titles, and he can end on a high with another one in 2024.
