On Wednesday, April 12, MS Dhoni, the renowned Indian captain and outstanding wicketkeeper-batsman, made history by leading the Chennai Super Kings in his 200th IPL match during Match No. 17 of the IPL 2023.
The right-handed batsman, age 41, who joined the CSK squad in the first-ever IPL auction in 2008, has served as the team captain for the preceding 14 editions.
Dhoni left his captain post before the IPL season started last year after 12 seasons in which he participated in nine finals, advanced to 11 playoff rounds, and took home four championships. Ravindra Jadeja’s resignation in the middle of the competition forced Dhoni to take over again.
Dhoni is the only captain to achieve this feat
Dhoni is the only captain in the history of the IPL to serve as captain for 200 or more games. However, despite making a record number of appearances, Super Kings lost to Rajasthan Royals by just three runs in front of their own supporters. Dhoni gave it his hardest to get CSK across the finish line, but he could not strike a six on the game’s final ball to secure victory for his team.
He still delighted the raucous Chepauk crowd with a 17-ball, unblemished 32-run inning that featured three sixes and a four. When asked about the squad’s performance and his milestone match for the most successful IPL franchise in history following the game, Dhoni responded that milestones are not really important to him.
Milestones don’t really matter
“I think in the middle overs we needed a bit more strike rotation; there wasn’t much for the spinners, but they had experienced spinners, and we could not rotate strike. It was not that difficult, and the ownership of the loss should come from the batters. It was good that we could reach striking distance (of the target) as we were the last pair. It really affects NRR when you get to the last phase of the tournament.”
“I really didn’t know it was my 200th (game as CSK skipper), and milestones don’t really matter for me; it is about how you’re performing and the results,” he added.
With four points from four games, Dhoni and their team are in fifth place in the IPL 2023 points table after Wednesday’s close loss, CSK’s second defeat in four games this season.
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