Legendary India wicketkeeper-batter Mahendra Singh Dhoni will be leading Chennai Super Kings (CSK) for the 200th time in the Indian Premier League (IPL) when he takes the field against Rajasthan Royals (RR) at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Wednesday.
He has led CSK in 199 matches out of 213 so far, having won 120, lost 78, and one failed to produce a result. His win percentage with CSK as skipper is 60.30 per cent.
He had a one-season stint as skipper with Rising Pune Supergiant, a side that existed temporarily in IPL from 2016 to 2017.
In the IPL, Dhoni has scored 5,004 runs at an average of 39.09 and a strike rate of over 135. He has scored 24 half-centuries in his IPL career, with a best of 84*.
In the two innings he has batted in IPL 2023, Dhoni has come out at No. 8 and returned with scores of 14* (7) vs Gujarat Titans and 3-ball 12 against Lucknow Super Giants.
Legendary Sunil Gavaskar wants the 41-year-old Dhoni to bat higher up the order to give himself more time.
After winning the last away game in style at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium on April 8, CSK will host Rajasthan Royals at home in a high-voltage match on Wednesday.
"I am hoping MS Dhoni promotes himself higher in the batting order. So that he gets to play more than two or three overs in the games. He can make that difference for CSK with his batting because he is capable of scoring big runs," Gavaskar told Star Sports on the Cricket Live Show.
