Why is MS Dhoni not playing? CSK fans enraged as Thala misses 8th IPL 2026 game
MS Dhoni missed his eighth game of IPL 2026 as Chennai Super Kings faced Gujarat Titans at Chepauk. The lack of any clear update from the franchise or captain Ruturaj Gaikwad fuelled fan anger and retirement speculation.
Chennai Super Kings fans were left fuming as MS Dhoni missed his 8th game in the IPL 2026 campaign on Sunday, April 26. CSK fans have asked the franchise to give them clarity when it comes to the legendary wicketkeeper, with some wondering if he has quietly retired.
Dhoni was initially meant to be out for the first two weeks of the competition, but it has continued to extend well past that mark. Dhoni has been part of the training sessions for CSK, with batting coach Michael Hussey saying that the former Indian captain is progressing well with his progress, but they want him to be at his 100 percent.
There was a bit of chatter half an hour before the toss that Dhoni wasn't in the team bus that made its way to the Chepauk and that proved to be the case.
For the game against GT, CSK made only one change, and that was Urvil Patel coming in with Sarfaraz Khan dropping to the impact subs bench.
Gujarat got in Arshad Khan into the side as Prasidh Krishna misses out.
CSK vs GT: Playing XIs
Gujarat Titans Playing XI: Shubman Gill (c), B Sai Sudharsan, Jos Buttler (wk), Washington Sundar, Shahrukh Khan, Jason Holder, Rashid Khan, Arshad Khan, Kagiso Rabada, Mohammed Siraj, Manav Suthar
Chennai Super Kings Playing XI: Sanju Samson (wk), Ruturaj Gaikwad (c), Urvil Patel, Dewald Brevis, Shivam Dube, Kartik Sharma, Jamie Overton, Akeal Hosein, Noor Ahmad, Anshul Kamboj, Gurjapneet Singh
Impact subs:
Gujarat Titans: Glenn Phillips, Anuj Rawat, Nishant Sindhu, Rahul Tewatia, Kulwant Khejroliya
Chennai Super Kings: Ramakrishna Ghosh, Mukesh Choudhary, Prashant Veer, Matthew Short, Sarfaraz Khan
WHERE IS DHONI?
There was no update from Ruturaj Gaikwad at the toss about Dhoni, which left the fans unhappy. Some of them told Dhoni and CSK to stop playing with their feelings. Some of them believed that Dhoni has quietly retired from the team and has taken up a mentor's role with the side and won't play any part in the remaining portion of the competition.
The wait for the fans will now extend till the next home game when CSK welcome MI to the Chepauk for the second edition of the El Clasico this season.
IPL 2026 | IPL Schedule | IPL Points Table | IPL Player Stats | Purple Cap | Orange Cap | IPL Videos | Cricket News | Live Score
Chennai Super Kings fans were left fuming as MS Dhoni missed his 8th game in the IPL 2026 campaign on Sunday, April 26. CSK fans have asked the franchise to give them clarity when it comes to the legendary wicketkeeper, with some wondering if he has quietly retired.
Dhoni was initially meant to be out for the first two weeks of the competition, but it has continued to extend well past that mark. Dhoni has been part of the training sessions for CSK, with batting coach Michael Hussey saying that the former Indian captain is progressing well with his progress, but they want him to be at his 100 percent.
There was a bit of chatter half an hour before the toss that Dhoni wasn't in the team bus that made its way to the Chepauk and that proved to be the case.
For the game against GT, CSK made only one change, and that was Urvil Patel coming in with Sarfaraz Khan dropping to the impact subs bench.
Gujarat got in Arshad Khan into the side as Prasidh Krishna misses out.
CSK vs GT: Playing XIs
Gujarat Titans Playing XI: Shubman Gill (c), B Sai Sudharsan, Jos Buttler (wk), Washington Sundar, Shahrukh Khan, Jason Holder, Rashid Khan, Arshad Khan, Kagiso Rabada, Mohammed Siraj, Manav Suthar
Chennai Super Kings Playing XI: Sanju Samson (wk), Ruturaj Gaikwad (c), Urvil Patel, Dewald Brevis, Shivam Dube, Kartik Sharma, Jamie Overton, Akeal Hosein, Noor Ahmad, Anshul Kamboj, Gurjapneet Singh
Impact subs:
Gujarat Titans: Glenn Phillips, Anuj Rawat, Nishant Sindhu, Rahul Tewatia, Kulwant Khejroliya
Chennai Super Kings: Ramakrishna Ghosh, Mukesh Choudhary, Prashant Veer, Matthew Short, Sarfaraz Khan
WHERE IS DHONI?
There was no update from Ruturaj Gaikwad at the toss about Dhoni, which left the fans unhappy. Some of them told Dhoni and CSK to stop playing with their feelings. Some of them believed that Dhoni has quietly retired from the team and has taken up a mentor's role with the side and won't play any part in the remaining portion of the competition.
The wait for the fans will now extend till the next home game when CSK welcome MI to the Chepauk for the second edition of the El Clasico this season.
IPL 2026 | IPL Schedule | IPL Points Table | IPL Player Stats | Purple Cap | Orange Cap | IPL Videos | Cricket News | Live Score
