The Chennai Super Kings have lost four of their six IPL 2026 games thus far. Former captain MS Dhoni has been noticeably absent from these games. He missed the first two weeks of activity due to a calf issue. Dhoni was not in the stadium, despite having recently travelled to Hyderabad with the team. But CSK posted a video of Dhoni’s wicketkeeping on Tuesday. The video has raised questions about whether Dhoni is prepared for CSK’s upcoming game on Thursday against the Mumbai Indians.
Chennai Super Kings (CSK) batting coach Michael Hussey voiced confidence on Sunday regarding MS Dhoni’s potential return during the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 season. Due to a calf problem, the former Indian cricket player has not yet played in the 2026 Indian Premier League. It is unknown when the right-hand batter will rejoin CSK’s starting lineup, despite the fact that he has been participating in net sessions.
Hussey stated that Dhoni is making good progress with his recuperation and expressed satisfaction with his batting during the post-match press conference following CSK’s 10-run defeat to Sunrisers Hyderabad on Saturday.
“He’s progressing nicely with his rehab. And look, I’m a batting coach, and I’m happy with how he’s batting,” Hussey said.
Hussey went on to say that Dhoni is happy with his form and that he is batting well. He clarified that Dhoni’s primary goal during his recovery has been to increase his speed and running fitness, especially for fast runs between the wickets in the latter part of an innings. Hussey stated he expects Dhoni would return soon but is unaware of the precise return date.
“As you saw yesterday at training, he’s batting well. He was very happy with where his batting is at. He’s just about progressing with his running, because if he’s going to bat towards the back end of the innings, he’s going to have to scurry back for those twos and things like that. He just needs to get confidence in his running and build that speed up. I don’t know when he’ll play, but I’m hoping it’s sooner rather than later, like all the fans are,” the CSK batting coach said.