IPL: 5 Players who can replace MS Dhoni as CSK captain

The Ranchi-born legendary cricketer MS Dhoni has made his legacy as far as captaincy in IPL is concerned. He has achieved many things that are merely a dream for many other skippers. He is highly ranked as a captain and many cricketers owe their careers to MS Dhoni. He has been a Kingmaker throughout his career.

Since 2008, Dhoni has been captaining the Chennai Super Kings. CSK got banned for two years between 2016 to 2018, so the franchise has been part of 13 seasons of IPL, qualifying 11 times for the playoffs, and winning the title four times. He has been the face of the franchise since the inaugural edition and of course, the most loved captain of all time.

The CSK fans’ beloved “Thala” will turn 41 this year, so, we might see him playing in the IPL for the last time in 2023. He stepped down from captaincy before the start of the 2022 season, to groom Ravindra Jadeja as a captain for the upcoming season. CSK never got rhythm under Jadeja’s captaincy, so MS again took the charge of leadership in the middle of the season. Now, CSK desperately needs a skipper who can serve them for at least the next five seasons.

Here are the options that can be considered by CSK in place of MS Dhoni

1. Steve Smith

The former Australian skipper Steve Smith has a good record as far as captaincy is considered. He has also captained Rajasthan Royals in a few seasons and took Rising Pune Supergiants to IPL final in 2017. He captained the Australian cricket team in all three formats for three years. Australia did pretty well under him and emerged as one of the strongest teams.

The middle-order batter is also a great asset in the batting department, to have in the lineup. He can play the role of the anchor during the middle overs. Smith is a champion cricketer and a nice student of the game of cricket. In addition to his batting and captaincy, he is a great fielder too. Fans have also seen him taking some blinders, both inside and outside of the 30-yard circle.

The batter has captained Australia in 35 Tests, 51 ODIs, and eight T20Is in which his team has won 19, 25, and four games respectively. He has played 43 IPL matches as a captain in which, his team has won 25 of them, and one game ended with no result. He has an incredible winning percentage of 59.52 in IPL.