‘'Don't follow me' — MS Dhoni's advice to Ruturaj Gaikwad before CSK vs SRH IPL 2026

On the eve Chennai Super Kings’ (CSK) final home clash at the MA Chidambaram Stadium at Chepauk during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026, MS Dhoni was part of an event before their practice session where he revealed the advice he gave to the current leader, Ruturaj Gaikwad, who has done a decent job in shouldering the responsibility of the franchise. 

Before the beginning of the event, there was a lot of anticipation of the Chennai fans to see their beloved ‘Thala’, who, however, hasn’t played a single game of the season after their 12 league-stage encounters.

What Dhoni actually told Ruturaj— ‘Run CSK the way you want to run it, not the way I did’

There is no clarity from the Super Kings camp on whether the veteran would play the last home clash against the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). But during an event, Dhoni spoke about his suggestions to captain Ruturaj Gaikwad. 

“What I told Rutu was to run CSK the way he wanted to run it. That’s how I have run CSK for a very long time. And I always felt it’s a game where the captain has to make the decisions. Yes, there are coaches and support stuff, but it’s not like football where the manager decides. In cricket, it’s about the captain and he has to decide.” MS Dhoni expressed in the event. 

“Yes, there will be certain things that he will pick from the way I used to lead. But individuals are different. Whatever you feel is your style, you have the full liberty over here to decide.” The former Indian captain added.

CSK vs SRH IPL 2026 in Chennai— How Dhoni’s leadership handover Ruturaj’s captaincy call

The legendary player reckoned that there would be a few things Gaikwad could pick from his leadership but need to be his own man at the end.

“I’m very open, I’ll come and talk to you, but you don’t have to do even one thing that I speak to you about. Let’s say I come up with ten pieces of advice, if you don’t follow even one, that is fair enough. When you are the leader, you have to take that responsibility. As a leader, you see the resources that you have and how you want to use it.” Dhoni addressed.

See Also: MS Dhoni spotted batting at Chepauk ahead of CSK vs SRH — is he playing tonight in IPL 2026?

“We are someone who believes in concentrating more on cricket. Yes, we have had to do a lot of other things that are surrounding cricket, but as a franchisee, we know that our essence is cricket and we should stick to that.” He claimed in the event.

The philosophy behind Dhoni’s advice and what it means for CSK’s playoff push

Gaikwad has captained the Super Kings in 31 games of the T20s and won 14 of them at a winning rate of 45.16%. He has a win-loss ratio of 0.820. Under him, CSK has won six games of this IPL 2026 season out of 12 games at a net run rate of +0.027.

See Also: Can CSK still qualify for IPL 2026 Playoffs after 7-Wicket loss to LSG in Lucknow? Complete scenario explained

Chennai will need to win the last two games against Hyderabad and the Gujarat Titans (GT) to confirm their qualification for the playoffs. If they win at least one of the last two clashes, they can still qualify but will need to depend on several other results.