IPL Auction 2025: Rohit Sharma influence? MS Dhoni explains selflessness behind his batting order shift

Legendary CSK skipper MS Dhoni has finally opened up on his No. 8 batting spot in the Indian Premier League. Dhoni feels that he has nothing more to achieve since he has retired from international cricket. Thus, he wanted to give more chances to other players in the team.

In the last few years, Dhoni has given up his middle-order spot in the Chennai Super Kings and instead bats lower down the order at No. 8 after Shivam Dube and Ravindra Jadeja. His move has received criticism at times but Dhoni has been adamant about giving the youngsters more opportunities.

Dhoni has been equally effective down the order. His hitting abilities have come to the fore and he has been at his destructive best. In IPL 2024, the wicketkeeper-batter scored 161 runs at an average of 53.66 and a strike rate of 220.54.

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MS Dhoni breaks silence on No. 8 batting position for CSK

During an event in Goa, MS Dhoni was asked about the reason for batting lower down the order. He stated that he wanted to give chances to Ravindra Jadeja and Shivam Dube to stake a claim in India's squad for the T20 World Cup 2024. Hence, he wanted to give them more opportunities.

"My thinking was simple- if others are doing their job well, why do I need to come up the order. If you're talking about last year (season) specifically, the T20 World Cup squad was going to be announced soon. So we have to give people who are fighting for a spot a chance," Dhoni said.

"In our team (CSK), we had a few, [Ravindra] Jadeja was there, Shivam Dube was there, so you give them an opportunity to prove themselves to get into the Indian team," he added.

"There was nothing in it for me" - MS Dhoni

Both Ravindra Jadeja and Shivam Dube were later selected in India's squad for the T20 World Cup 2024. Both of them played smaller but important roles in India's T20 World Cup win this year.

The legendary India captain further claimed that he had nothing to achieve since he had already retired from international cricket. According to him, CSK was happy with his batting spot as it worked well for them

"There was nothing in it for me, no selection and other things. So I'm good behind (playing down the order) and my team was happy with what I was doing," Dhoni added.

MS Dhoni's record as IPL captain

MS Dhoni recently announced that he wants to enjoy whatever years of cricket are left in him. He has hinted at playing the IPL for some more years which is a piece of good news for Chennai Super Kings. CSK are likely to retain their talismanic captain under the uncapped players category.

MS Dhoni has led CSK to a record five IPL wins, which is the joint highest alongside Rohit Sharma. Under his leadership, Chennai Super Kings scaled new heights and registered a record 133 wins in 226 matches.