Chennai Super Kings captain Ruturaj Gaikwad has admitted that he remains unsure about whether the legendary wicketkeeper-batter MS Dhoni will return for IPL 2027.
MS Dhoni did not play a single game during IPL 2026 due to multiple injury setbacks, and his absence was heavily felt throughout a difficult campaign for CSK. The five-time champions eventually finished the season outside the top four, with injuries, inconsistent combinations, and a lack of experienced finishers hurting them repeatedly.
“Obviously, you will get to know it next year itself” – Ruturaj Gaikwad on MS Dhoni
Chennai Super Kings lost their last match of IPL 2026 against Gujarat Titans and after that game, naturally, questions around MS Dhoni’s future surfaced once again.
Speaking after the match, Ruturaj Gaikwad admitted that even the CSK dressing room currently has no clarity regarding whether MS Dhoni will feature in IPL 2027.
“Obviously you will get to know it next year itself (on MS Dhoni playing IPL 2027). Even I’ll get to know it next year itself. Obviously, it’s a hard, hard miss for us definitely. He’s someone who can have a fear in the opposition, especially coming in those late overs. Can really change the game, can really change the momentum just by staying at the crease,” Ruturaj Gaikwad said.
“So, he’s someone, definitely we missed a lot this season. But, I mean, we never know about next season, but obviously really happy with the guys we had and really happy with the experience they got this year,” he concluded.
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Why MS Dhoni didn’t play IPL 2026?
MS Dhoni missed the entire IPL 2026 season due to a number of injuries that disrupted his comeback plans completely. The former CSK skipper initially suffered a severe calf strain before the tournament began, ruling him out for the opening phase of the competition.
Just when Dhoni was reportedly recovering and preparing to potentially return later in the season, he sustained another setback after suffering a sore thumb during practice sessions.
The repeated injury concerns eventually forced the CSK management and Dhoni himself to take a cautious approach. Despite attempting to regain fitness ahead of CSK’s crucial final home fixture against Sunrisers Hyderabad, Dhoni reportedly realised he was still not physically 100 percent ready to compete.
Also, it was reported that Dhoni chose not to take away opportunities from younger players whom CSK were trying to groom for the future; hence, he chose to skip matches.
Kartik Sharma obviously impressed a lot – Ruturaj Gaikwad
Ruturaj Gaikwad also spoke positively about several young players who stepped up during CSK’s transition phase following the departures of experienced names over recent years.
“Yes, I mean, moving on from the likes of Ajinkya Rahane or, you know, Ambati Rayudu, is someone who, we had experience throughout the years. Kartik obviously impressed a lot. He has a lot of potential going ahead, obviously a lot of areas to improve. Urvil again is someone, playing a full season for the first time. So, you have a lot of expectations coming when you are playing full season,” he said.
“But obviously good to have those games in the bag for everyone and definitely we’ll come back stronger next year,” he added.
Ruturaj Gaikwad reflects on difficult IPL 2026 campaign
Gaikwad further admitted that IPL 2026 proved extremely difficult for CSK due to injuries and constant disruption in team combinations.
“Well, tough season to start, especially the hat-trick of losses. And then after that, once we found that momentum, obviously we found guys playing at the right spot, the right combination, everything started working. And then obviously, a couple of injuries again and again. Didn’t really help much, especially missing out Jamie and another allrounder in Ramakrishna Ghosh, kind of unsettled our playing 12,” he said.
Gaikwad also highlighted how inexperienced the squad actually was despite public expectations remaining extremely high around the Chennai Super Kings every season.
“Not many people actually buy the fact that we are a young team, we are in a transition phase and not a lot of players who are experienced enough, especially in the toughest competition,” he admitted.
“We got to know what are the areas we are lacking and definitely still to get those six wins, on the road and some couple of great wins as well. So really proud of the unit,” Gaikwad concluded.
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