IPL 2023: Shane Watson Gives a Big Update on MS Dhoni’s IPL Career

Former Australian and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) player Shane Watson said that former India as well as CSK captain MS Dhoni is fit enough to play in the Indian Premier League (IPL) for the next three to four years as well. Dhoni, 41, is preparing to lead CSK in the upcoming IPL season, which begins on March 31.

However, CSK will feature in the tournament opener as they take on defending champions Gujarat Titans (GT) at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. While there is no official information, a number of unconfirmed reports have stated that IPL 2023 will be MSD’s final season in the T20 league. His former CSK teammate Watson, however, feels MS Dhoni can play a few more years. Speaking to ANI, he commented:

“I heard that this is the last IPL of MS Dhoni but I don’t think. MS Dhoni can continue to play for the next three to four years. He is still very fit and batting and wicket-keeping really well.”

Shane Watson also praised Dhoni’s leadership skills and added: “His leadership is something that is as good as his game. His fitness and mind-reading of the game make him a good leader. His skills on the ground are awesome. He is one of the main reasons that CSK is successful.”

However, MS Dhoni-led Chennai are the second most successful IPL team, with four titles after Mumbai Indians, who have won more titles than CSK – five.

“He got emotional” – Shane Watson shares the chat with MS Dhoni during IPL 2018

Meanwhile, a few days back, Watson revealed how MS Dhoni got emotional while speaking to the team during IPL 2018, their comeback season after being banned for two years as well. He recalled:

“There was one moment when MS Dhoni got up and spoke at the first team function that we had. You could see how much it meant to him, he got emotional around how much it meant for him to CSK to get back together.”

While recalling good memories of the 2018 IPL edition, Shane Watson shared that Dhoni and coach Stephen Fleming managed to have a great team environment. The veteran said:

“The first game against MI, Dwayne Bravo pulled the rabbit out of the hat, got us home out of nowhere. The belief of immediate. We got the team, we got the players, and we had good performances. The environment Dhoni and Stephen Fleming created. you just went out and had fun. We never talked about results, (we were) just there to enjoy ourselves. We had a great bunch of players, with families there as well. For me, it was a special time.”