Brian Lara backs MS Dhoni to play for CSK in IPL 2022 amidst speculations of franchise not retaining him

While Chennai Super Kings (CSK) have enjoyed a decent run in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021, skipper MS Dhoni has looked completely out of touch. Dhoni is in middle of a long stretched lean patch and many feel that CSK is carrying an unnecessary burden in MS Dhoni.

Several fans and experts have speculated that CSK might not retain Dhoni for the next season of the IPL. However, former West Indies great Brian Lara feels that CSK will not let go of Dhoni at any cost. Dhoni has led CSK to great heights, leading them to eight IPL finals and three IPL titles. He has also scored 4728 runs at an average of 39.4 runs in 218 IPL matches for CSK over the past decade.

"I mean it's (IPL) not just franchise cricket in India. This is a brand. Dhoni, along with Virat Kohli, are the two biggest brands in India. Obviously you want to pick the best team and you want to make sure that everybody is fit and everybody is capable of performing at the highest level. Yes, Dhoni has underperformed this season but it's not the end of the road for him," said Lara

Earlier, MS Dhoni ended the speculations of the ongoing IPL season being his last as a player by saying that he will play his last IPL game in Chennai. However, he said it’s not certain he will don the CSK jersey and if CSK will retain him due to the new retention policy.

"Well you can see me in yellow, but whether I'll be playing for CSK - there are a lot of uncertainties around it for a simple reason that we have two new teams coming up. We don't know the retention policy. We don't know how many foreigners, Indian players we can retain, the money cap that every player will be cutting from the kitty. So there are a lot of uncertainties," Dhoni had said.

However, Lara is absolutely sure that CSK won’t go into IPL 2022 without MS Dhoni. "It's very difficult to see Chennai Super Kings going into the 2022 IPL without Mahendra Singh Dhoni. So I believe in terms of the value of the brand and what he brings to the IPL and his franchise is of great value. I believe CSK will retain him if they need to retain any players."

Meanwhile, CSK’s juggernaut in IPL 2021 has hit a small road bump as they have lost three back to back games. Yet, they are in a good position to finish as the second team in the points table. The Men in Yellow are likely to take on Delhi Capitals on October 10 in qualifier one.