Former Australia spinner Brad Hogg believes that the 2021 IPL will be MS Dhoni’s last act and that he will retire soon. The Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain has looked lost at the crease in the last two IPL editions and has failed to make a significant contribution with the bat.
With the IPL mega-auction, CSK and MS Dhoni will have to consider their options keeping in mind the cost of retaining a player and the future of the team. While Dhoni has been as quick as ever regarding his captaincy, his batting has been very bad.
Hogg said that Dhoni had lost his sharpness with age, as was evident when he was once again undone by KKR’s Varun Chakravarthy. Speaking on his YouTube channel, Hogg said:
“I think he is going to retire from IPL cricket at the end of the year. The way he got out with the wrong un’ to Chakraborty on the second day, there was a huge gap between bat and pad. I think Reflexes of 40 – The age of 40 is just beginning to decrease. His keeping has been sensational.
“It’s good for Indian cricket and CSK that he is still going in the middle because of his leadership. He keeps things calm and also helps Jadeja grow as a cricketer and develop youngsters The way he walked, there was that body language, a gleam in the eye saying I think I’ve lost that sharpness.”
Dhoni was dismissed for just 1 after surprisingly promoting himself ahead of Ravindra Jadeja in the final leg of the tense run chase against KKR. In the end, it was the all-rounder who led the team to victory.
I think Dhoni will play the role of management: Brad Hogg
Hogg believes that Dhoni’s mentoring the Indian team in the upcoming T20 World Cup could be a possible role for the management. He feels that Dhoni could be at the helm at CSK to oversee the transition period with Stephen Fleming. Hogg said:
“At 40 years old and with the role going into that T20 World Cup with the Indian cricket team, I think he will move into a management role or even a head coach of CSK.
“Perhaps the management role and sitting down with Stephen Fleming and helping the youngsters develop, but also making a good strategy to lead the new wave of CSK cricketers because you need someone of that quality who can play in Indian conditions. Knows the Indian people and has a good relationship with the players.”
CSK CEO Kasi Viswanathan has claimed in the build-up to the second phase of the 2021 IPL that he expects Dhoni to be with the franchise in the future, but his future role is yet to be defined.