IPL 2025: Mahendra Singh Dhoni returns as Chennai Super Kings' skipper

Dubai: Chennai Super Kings' skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad has been ruled out of Indian Premier League Season 18 due to an elbow fracture and former skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni is tipped to take over the role, said coach Stephen Fleming.

Dhoni returns to lead the five-time champions after a two-year gap against Kolkata Knight Riders in Chepauk on Friday. The 43-year-old led the Yellove to their fifth title, defeating Gujarat Titans in the final in Ahmedabad in 2023.

Chennai have been struggling this season, winning just one of their five matches — the opening clash against Mumbai Indians. Since then, they have lost two home games: to Royal Challengers Bengaluru, their first defeat to them at home in 17 years, and to Delhi Capitals, who registered their first win at the Chennai fortress in 15 years.

“Unfortunately, Ruturaj Gaikwad is going to be ruled out of the tournament,” coach Stephen Fleming said. “(Gaikwad) got hit in Guwahati. He’s been operating with an amount of pain.”

Chennai’s batting has failed to fire so far, and the exit of key batter Gaikwad comes as a major blow to their fortunes.

“He (Dhoni) had no hesitation to step up and help guide us out of this (poor run),” Fleming said. “We’ll look at replacements. We’ve got some good players in the squad that have been with us a while, so we’ll look from within first.”

There were reports that Dhoni might take over the captaincy for the Delhi Capitals game, with Gaikwad nursing an injury. However, the 28-year-old batter continued to play despite the setback.

While CSK showed glimpses of revival in their last outing against Punjab Kings — particularly with the bat in a spirited chase of 219 — the 18-run loss underlined their struggle to string together a complete performance.

The batters, including Dhoni, who provided a late blitz with a 12-ball 27 in the last match, Rachin Ravindra, Devon Conway, and Shivam Dube have had starts and scored some runs under their belts this season, but none have gone on to make the big scores.

In the bowling department, Chennai will rely on the pace trio of Mukesh Choudhary, Matheesha Pathirana, and Khaleel Ahmed, while the spin attack will once again be spearheaded by Ravindra Jadeja, R. Ashwin, and Noor Ahmad — all of whom will need to rediscover their sting at Chepauk.

On the other side, defending champions Kolkata arrive in Chennai after a narrow four-run defeat to Lucknow Super Giants at home. With two wins in five games and placed sixth on the table, they too are in need of consistency. Their bowlers came under fire at Eden Gardens, and a better effort will be expected on the more spin-friendly surface in Chennai.