Ben Stokes or Ajinkya Rahane? Who succeeds MS Dhoni as CSK captain after his IPL retirement
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Its hard to figure out or comment on what the fans will miss the most when Dhoni says goodbye to this tournament and cricket MS Dhoni - the batter, or MS Dhoni - the captain.
MS Dhoni - the batter, was lethal, as dangerous a lower-order batter and a finisher like none other, but as time would have it, hes a pale shadow of that player now. Never mind, he had cracked the code of taking the games deep and finishing on his terms, and even today, he holds that charisma to do that.
MS Dhoni - the captain, is for eternity! Barely anyone comes close to him as a leader in this tournament. He has the sharpest mind, the quickest hands in the east, an eye for every moment, and above all - a gut that never lets him down. CSK, for as many as 13 years, has blossomed under his guidance; plenty of players, irrespective of for which team they play for, makesure they are listening to what he says and pick his brain.
Such things are beyond every word, every learning curve and anything this game has to offer.
Life beyond MS Dhoni in IPL will hit different!
So, looking at the bigger picture now, when MS Dhoni leaves, who succeeds him as the CSK captain?
Ben Stokes, Ajinkya Rahane, Ravindra Jadeja or someone else?
Lets have a look
Ben Stokes as CSKs captain
It looks like the most viable option for all obvious reasons. Stokes is Englands Test captain, and the best modern-day all-rounder. Under Brendon McCullum, who also once was part of MS Dhonis CSK, Stokes had led England to great heights and has shown hunger for more success.
His cricketing knowledge, his game sense, much like MS - his gut, everything seems to align. Having played under Dhoni at the Rising Pune Supergiant (RPS), and now at Chennai, Stokes understands the dressing room atmosphere and how things go about in this dugout.
Also, considering the passing the baton to Stokes would be a smooth process, the top bosses and, of course MS himself wouldnt mind Ben to be the next CSK captain.
However, there is one obstacle Stokes history with injuries and commitment to international schedule could spoil the plan.
So, its about time before these issues get addressed and a new captain is named.
Ajinkya Rahane as CSKs captain
Surprise, surprise! Yes, you read it right, Ajinkya Rahane as CSKs captain when Dhoni retires. Why not?
Rahane is a calm cricketer; he lets his mind and game speak for him, he surely has the brain of a leader for what he achieved for India against Australia in the famous 2020/21 Border-Gavaskar series, where he led his team to an improbable series win the biggest of that came at the Gabba.
For an outsider, Rahane was just a random buy at the 2022 IPL auction, and he wasnt even considered to be playing, let alone being considered asMS Dhonis successor at CSK.
Then, life happened!
Dhoni not only made him play, but also gave him the liberty to unleash himself, and when Rahane did what his captainsaid, he took IPL 2023 by storm.
It is what confidence does to a human being.
With this going forward, and keeping in mind several other factors, including the rule of four foreign players in the XI, picking an Indian player to lead the side would at least solve this worry.
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Who else?
Who else? Chennai tried Ravindra Jadeja, and it didnt work but going by the experience, hes most likely to be a backup option.
Ruturaj Gaikwad? He could be tried, but has no credentials as such to push for a case; but again, who knows, no one knew MS could turn into a super-hero captain, but here he is!
Friday, April 28, 2023 at 9:17 am