The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) recently unveiled the retention rules for the upcoming IPL 2025 season, with one particular aspect of the announcement holding significant importance for the Chennai Super Kings (CSK). Under the new regulations, any cricketer who has not represented India in the past five years will be classified as uncapped, resulting in a reduced retention fee for the franchise ahead of the auction. This rule directly impacts former Indian captain MS Dhoni, allowing CSK the opportunity to retain his services for a mere Rs 4 crore.
In light of this development, CSK CEO Kasi Viswanathan made a profound statement regarding Dhoni's future in the Indian Premier League, hinting at potential changes on the horizon.
“We are not sure at this stage. We might not even use it for MS Dhoni. It's still too early to comment on this because we haven't had discussions with him. Dhoni was in the US and we haven't had discussions yet. Now I am travelling this week, so there is a possibility of some discussions in the coming week. So there could be some clarity then. We are hopeful of him playing but it's a call Dhoni will himself make,"he said in an interview with Times of India.
Despite retiring from international cricket in 2020, Mahendra Singh Dhoni's last appearance for the Indian national team was in July 2019. His final match was against New Zealand in the semi-final of the 2019 ODI World Cup, which unfortunately ended in defeat for India.
“A capped Indian player will become uncapped if the player has in the last five calendar years preceding the year in which the relevant Season is held, not played in the starting XI in International Cricket (Test match, ODI, Twenty20 International) or does not have a Central Contract with BCCI. This will be applicable for Indian Players only,” an IPL Statement said.
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