Former Indian fast bowler Irfan Pathan has given a strong statement regarding the expected return of veteran wicketkeeper batsman MS Dhoni. Ahead of the IPL clash between Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Mumbai Indians (MI), Pathan advised against dropping a young Indian player to accommodate the experienced one.
Chennai Super Kings will take on Mumbai Indians in the 33rd match of the ongoing tournament at the Wankhede Stadium on Thursday, April 23. The five-time IPL champions will need to adjust their combination after top-order batsman Ayush Mhatre was ruled out of the rest of the season due to a hamstring injury.
MS Dhoni set for possible IPL 2026 comeback after injury
MS Dhoni is close to making a comeback in IPL 2026 after being ruled out of the initial phase due to a calf injury. The experienced wicketkeeper has rejoined the Chennai Super Kings squad in Mumbai and has been actively training, including wicketkeeping drills and batting sessions during the recent training session.
Dhoni’s last appearance was against Gujarat Titans (GT) in the final league match of IPL 2025. His return could boost the morale of the team, especially when Super Kings is eighth in the table. Injuries to Khaleel Ahmed and Ayush Mhatre have thrown them off balance and forced the management to rethink the combinations.
If Dhoni is declared fully fit, the team will face a difficult selection decision. Bringing him back into the playing eleven could mean leaving out a young player, which could create a big dilemma for the management before winning matches in the tournament.
Irfan Pathan urges CSK to drop Matthew Short for MS Dhoni
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Irfan Pathan addressed the selection dilemma. He suggested that domestic batsman Urvil Patel should replace the injured Ayush Mhatre. Pathan also stressed that MS Dhoni should replace Australian all-rounder Matthew Short in the playing eleven.
“He (Dhoni) will probably play in place of Matthew Short, but if he comes in place of an Indian player, I can’t agree with that because you want Indian players to play. You would want Urvil Patel to come in place of Ayush Mhatre. Urvil Patel bats with high intent and his strike rate in domestic cricket is over 200.”
“You want to see him play, and a lot of fans want to see MS Dhoni play too. But if he comes for an Indian player, maybe not.”
Short struggled in both his matches and scored just 36 runs at a strike rate of 97.29. Dropping the overseas batsman seems to be the most logical option to accommodate the returning veteran.
Irfan Pathan reveals favorite playing XI against Mumbai Indians
Irfan Pathan revealed his preferred playing XI for the upcoming encounter. He suggested bringing in uncapped seam-bowling all-rounder Ramakrishna Ghosh while retaining the core group from the previous match and maintaining a balance between domestic and foreign players.
The former all-rounder has also included left-arm fast bowler Mukesh Chaudhary in his lineup, although he may miss the match due to the recent demise of his mother.
Irfan’s CSK XII: Sanju Samson, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Sarfaraz Khan, Shivam Dubey, Dewald Brewis, Jamie Overton, MS Dhoni/Matthew Short, Anshul Kamboj/Ramakrishna Ghosh, Noor Ahmed, Gurjapaneet Singh, Mukesh Chaudhary, Urvil Patel.
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