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Chennai Super Kings person had a hard opening to their Indian Premier League 2026 campaign, managing conscionable 2 wins from their archetypal six matches and slipping to seventh connected the points table. Captain Ruturaj Gaikwad has faced increasing criticism, not lone for the team’s results but besides for his ain struggles with the bat.
Across six innings, helium has scored lone 82 runs astatine an mean of 13.67 and a onslaught complaint of 112.33, numbers that bespeak his dip successful form. However, erstwhile India batter
Sanjay Manjrekar
believes the work cannot remainder solely connected the young skipper. Speaking connected Sportstar’s Insight Edge podcast, helium pointed towards the decision-makers down the scenes. “This blame, I’m going to enactment astatine the doorstep of the owners and radical who marque the large decisions.
Because Gaikwad, earlier helium was captain, was phenomenal astatine the apical of the order,” Manjrekar said. He besides suggested that the changeless spotlight astir
MS Dhoni
has analyzable matters for Gaikwad. “And past that happening with M.S
Dhoni
, whether he’s going to beryllium playing, whether he’s going to beryllium captain, they handled that precise badly. And this is wherever you spot the sycophancy of Indian civilization that has seeped into cricket arsenic well. I mean, determination isn’t conscionable a instrumentality pursuing of Dhoni, determination is sycophancy astir it,” helium added.
Manjrekar backed his constituent by recalling a past infinitesimal involving Dhoni that drew a beardown absorption from fans. “There was [this] 1 lawsuit of Dhoni trying to enactment his bat into the crease, and it was a precise adjacent call. And I said, well, helium is intelligibly abbreviated of the crease, and it should beryllium tally out. They [fans] got aggravated with maine for saying that due to the fact that it was anti-Dhoni. So determination they mislaid show of the full picture.” Dhoni, meanwhile, has not played immoderate portion successful IPL 2026 truthful acold aft sustaining a calf strain up of the season. When asked whether his instrumentality could easiness the unit connected Gaikwad, Manjrekar appeared uncertain, raising questions astir however the seasoned would acceptable into the existent setup. “Maybe, but past you person to play Dhoni connected the field. And however bash you bash that? I mean, increasingly, he’s uncovering it pugnacious to deliver. So it was a spot of a gag erstwhile helium utilized to travel down the bid and conscionable play 3 oregon 4 balls. The sum would hype that up arsenic good – ‘What an innings.’
And it lasted 4 balls. “So that’s not feasible anymore, and it was ne'er going to beryllium a semipermanent thing. So I can’t unreal to cognize however Ruturaj felt erstwhile M.S. was connected the field, but not captaining, arsenic opposed to M.S. not being determination and helium being solely successful charge,” helium said. The erstwhile cricketer besides broadened the discussion, comparing CSK’s attack with that of Mumbai Indians, suggesting some franchises tin beryllium overly attached to established stars. “CSK and Mumbai Indians are somewhat blameworthy of being emotionally connected and invested successful the big-name, big-brand players a spot excessively much. CSK adjacent much truthful with Dhoni. This means that you’re not getting radical who are successful their prime. It’s similar surviving successful the past a small bit. It’s conscionable astir getting guys who are successful their premier successful T20 cricket. It’s specified a modern-day format, truthful it’s champion to beryllium existent with everything that you bash with your team,” Manjrekar added.
