Published on: Apr 27, 2026 4:18 pm IST|Updated on: Apr 27, 2026 4:20 pm IST
MS Dhoni has emerged as the biggest talking point for the 5-time champions Chennai Super Kings this season. The veteran wicket-keeper and the face of this franchise has yet to feature in the Tata IPL 2026 due to injury. Previously, it was noted that Dhoni would be missing the first two weeks of the season, but it seems like fans have to prolong their wait after the latest update provided by head coach Stephen Fleming.
CSK head coach Stephen Fleming has revealed a major development regarding Dhoni’s return. According to Fleming, Dhoni was on the road to full recovery but met with another setback to an existing calf injury during a practice game.
“The calf is a tough one. If he takes off and rips the calf again, then he will be gone [for the whole season]. So we pushed it early. In a warm-up game, he tweaked it again, is my understanding. And since then, he has been just working hard to get some movement into it. But there was a setback,” Fleming was quoted as saying on ESPNcricinfo.
Fleming, however, is confident about Dhoni returning to the season soon and believes that the veteran wicket-keeper batter has been working hard to attain fitness and recover fully.
“But look, he’s the guide on this one. And he’s working hard with the physio and doing all the rehab. We’re just waiting for the word, really. But all I can keep saying, it’s not making light of this, he is progressing and doing everything.”
The 44-year-old is slowly approaching his twilight period and isn’t even regularly featuring in competitive cricket. In fact, his last professional outing came last year when he played the final league game of the Chennai Super Kings in IPL 2025.
The Super Kings are enduring yet another tough season. So far in the 8 games, the 5-time champions have registered 3 wins and lost 5 games. They are currently in the mid-table jolt, placed 6th on the points table with a net run rate of -0.121.
Two of their 3 wins came at home against the Delhi Capitals and Kolkata Knight Riders in back-to-back games by 23 and 32 runs, respectively. Their only away win happened to be their best game as they drubbed their arch-rivals and fellow 5-time champions Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai by a gigantic margin of 103 runs.
With six more games left for the Super Kings in the group stage, they need to win at least five of them to stand a chance of making it to the playoffs. Check out Chennai Super Kings’ remaining group fixtures in Tata IPL 2026.
Tags: IPL 2026