MS Dhoni will be the first player to be retained by Chennai Super Kings for IPL 2022: CSK official

New Delhi, October 17: Chennai Super Kings lifted their fourth IPL trophy with an emphatic victory of Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL 2021 final under the leadership of their captain MS Dhoni. Dhoni at the post-match presentation hinted that he's going to offer his services to the franchise for at least one more year when he responded to commentator Harsha Bhogle that he hasn't left behind any legacy yet.

Dhoni's statement was enough to rest assure millions of CSK fans that their favourite Thala isn't done yet and that he will definitely don the yellow jersey next season.

Now the franchise has confirmed that they won't let go of their skipper at any cost. Despite confusion over the retention rules ahead of the IPL 2022 mega auction, they won't let go of the captain, who has been the face of the Yellow Brigade since the inception of the tournament.

Speaking to ANI, a CSK official said the first retention card at the auction will be used to retain the captain.

The CSK official told, "There will be retention and that is a fact. The number of retentions isn't something we are aware of yet. But honestly, that is secondary in MS' case because the first card will be used for him. The ship needs its captain and rest assured he will be back next year."

India Today quoted another CSK source saying, "Which team or franchise would not want to retain a man like Dhoni. Two new teams will be added, so it would be great to see the competition. There are many things which we will have to see but as of now, I can only say that we will go for Dhoni. The rest we will see and go by rules set by the BCCI."

Earlier on October 15, when asked about the road ahead for him after registering his fourth title win in the IPL, Dhoni said: "Again I've said it before, it depends on BCCI. With two new teams coming in, we have to decide what is good for CSK. It's not about me being there in top-three or four. It's about making a strong core to ensure the franchise doesn't suffer. The core group, we have to have a hard look to see who can contribute for the next 10 years."

"Every final is special, if you look at stats, we may say we're the most consistent team to lose the final too. I feel it's important to come back strong, especially in the knockouts. Frankly no chats, we don't talk a lot [meetings]. It's more one-on-one, our practice sessions are meeting sessions. The moment you get into a team room, it brings about different pressure," he added.