AB de Villiers believes that as long as MS Dhoni is playing in the IPL, he should be the captain of CSK, citing Dhoni’s leadership impact and expressing concerns about the team’s performance when he isn’t leading.
In light of ongoing discussions regarding Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s future with the Chennai Super Kings, AB de Villiers suggested that Dhoni should reassume the captaincy if he continues playing in the IPL. Under Dhoni’s leadership, CSK clinched five IPL titles. This season, Dhoni passed the captaincy to Ruturaj Gaikwad. Despite Gaikwad’s commendable performance as captain and batter, CSK did not reach the IPL playoffs. Dhoni’s future in the IPL remains uncertain since his international retirement in 2020.
AB de Villiers had previously critiqued the captaincy change and recently reiterated his stance. He believes Dhoni’s presence as captain adds significant intimidation to the team.
“I will only give you an honest answer if you’re going to report it in the right way yes so I wouldn’t say I called it a mistake. What I meant by that was with MS Dhoni around, playing against MS for so many years, that is the most intimidating sight to have him as an opposing captain,” said de Villiers to Jio Cinema.
The former cricketer emphasized that the decision was not a reflection on Gaikwad’s capabilities, as he sees a bright future for him and acknowledged his strong leadership this season. However, De Villiers argued that removing Dhoni as captain diminishes the team’s intimidation factor and believes Dhoni should lead the team when he is around.
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“They took away quite a bit of intimidation factor from CSK with not having him as captain. It’s got nothing to do with Gaikwad’s captaincy. I actually think he’s got a very bright future and he captained extremely well. But just having MS around, I always felt like it’s going to be a waste not having him as captain. They tried it before. It didn’t work (when Jadeja was handed over captaincy). And unfortunately this year, yes, you’ve got to look at the results,” he continued
“The majority of the games they played well, but at the end of the day they didn’t qualify for the knockouts. It’s definitely not because of Gaikwad’s captaincy. I do however ever feel that when MS is around he should be captain,” De Villiers concluded.
Last Updated on May 22, 2024
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