In what might come as a big boost for Chennai Super Kings, former captain MS Dhoni is close to match fitness and might feature in the clash against Sunrisers Hyderabad on Saturday, April 18, according
to a report in RevSportz.
Dhoni was ruled out for the first two weeks of IPL 2026 and it was expected that he would feature in the clash against Delhi Capitals on Saturday, April 11, but he didn’t.
Dhoni was also not a part of CSK’s playing XI in their last match against Kolkata Knight Riders, but chances are that he might feature against SRH.
“MS Dhoni to take a call tomorrow morning on whether he will travel to Hyderabad for CSK’s match against SRH on Saturday,” the report says.
According to the report, Dhoni is very close to full fitness and a final call will be taken on Thursday morning.
In the absence of Dhoni, Sanju Samson has taken over wicketkeeping duties in IPL 2026. Ruturaj Gaikwad has been providing regular updates on the former’s recovery, noting that his rehab is progressing as planned under the set two-week timeline.
Chennai Super Kings will face a tough selection decision if Dhoni is declared fit, having already bagged consecutive victories with an unchanged XI. The team has also been strengthened by the return of Dewald Brevis and the addition of Akeal Hosein to the team.
Meanwhile, spinner Noor Ahmad’s match-winning spell against Kolkata Knight Riders followed a lengthy conversation with Dhoni in the nets.
Chennai Super Kings assistant coach Sridharan Sriram spoke about the preparation put in by Noor ahead of the game, as well as a conversation with Dhoni, who hasn’t featured this season because of a calf strain.
“I think it was good, the wicket helped today, there was a little bit of boredom for him. The other wickets were quite flat. Today, he was a little bit slower through the air,” Sriram said while speaking at the post-match press conference.
