CSK Coach Hits Back At MS Dhoni Fitness Questions: 'Stop Making Light Of...'

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) head coach Stephen Fleming seems to have had enough of the constant questions and reports around MS Dhoni’s fitness. After sharing a fresh update on the CSK legend’s calf injury, which has kept him from starting any matches in the IPL 2026 season, Fleming said that people should ‘stop making light of this’ (stop taking it lightly) and urged them to trust Dhoni’s commitment.

Dhoni is one of the biggest names in the IPL, so his absence naturally brings questions and rumors. CSK initially said he’d miss a couple of weeks, but that timeline has now extended to a month. Dhoni has been seen batting multiple times, but concern remains around his overall fitness. Fleming shut down the remaining rumors by clearly stating that he had

a ‘setback’ during recovery and has been pushing since.

“The calf is a tough one,” Fleming said on Sunday (April 26) after CSK’s eight-wicket defeat to the Gujarat Titans in Ahmedabad. “If he takes off and rips the calf again, then he will be gone. So we pushed it early. In a warm-up game, he tweaked it again, it’s my understanding. And since then, he has been just working hard to get some movement into it. But there was a setback. So it has taken longer than we thought. But look, he’s the guy 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 is stop making light of this. He is progressing and doing everything,” he said.

The more matches CSK lose, the harder the sourced mill works. Recently, some reports said that Dhoni is close to full fitness but is hesitant in getting back into the 11 by disturbing a successful team combination.

Fleming didn’t mention any such thing.

CSK now host Mumbai Indians at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Saturday (May 2).