MS Dhoni set to play one game for CSK at Chepauk in 2027 before retiring

Legendary cricketer MS Dhoni might just have another season of IPL in him, as the Chennai Super Kings management is confident of the wicketkeeper-batter turning up for one final match for the franchise in the 2027 season of the tournament at their home ground before calling it quits. Dhoni has not travelled with the CSK squad for their last league-stage match of 2026 against the Gujarat Titans at the Narendra Modi Stadium.

Dhoni's unavailability in Ahmedabad means that it might be the first season

where he has missed all the matches due to his prolonged calf injury. While Dhoni has always been an emotion for his fans, his faithfuls will be eager to see him take the field for one last time before hanging his boots and winding up on a storied career.

According to Revsportz, the CSK management is hopeful that Dhoni will be available to play at least one game at the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai, in the upcoming 2027 edition of the marquee T20 tournament now that the franchise has nearly been eliminated from the ongoing season.

For the unversed, CSK were set to include Dhoni in the playing XI for their last home game of 2026 against the Sunrisers Hyderabad on Monday, May 18. However, it seems that the cricketer was not fully fit and match-ready to be able to hit the ground running, ruling him out of contention for participating in the all-important contest, where CSK lost in the last-over thriller.

While many fans and cricket pundits believed that Dhoni would not play in the IPL any more, his former CSK and India teammate Suresh Raina was seen having a chat with the cricketer at the end of the match. The cricketer-turned-commentator revealed his chat with the veteran stumper-batter post-game, saying that he has asked the 44-year-old to come back to playing for the five-time champions once again in 2027.

“I told MS Dhoni ‘you have given IPL 2026 a missed call. It won’t count. You have to come back next year’. He said ‘nahi yaar, body thoda waisa hai (my body is a little weak)’. I said ‘we are not believing anything. You have to play next year’. It’s his personal call. I think he is positive. The team is also gelling well again,” Raina said via Star Sports.

If the rumours of the last dance being in 2027 are to be believed, it will be a rollercoaster of emotions for the fans. But with MS Dhoni, it never happens until it actually happens.