MS Dhoni retires: As 2011-World Cup captain hangs his gloves, a look at his CSK journey

As India's 2011-World Cup winning Cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, announces his retirement from international cricket on Saturday, the nation looks forward to him donning the yellow cap of the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the upcoming installment of the Indian Premier League (IPL) in UAE from September 19. The IPL has been moved to the UAE amidst the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic. The MS Dhoni-led side has gathered in Chennai to hold a camp before they board the flight to the Middle East.

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CSK's franchise history

The India Cements-owned franchise bought star cricketer and then Indian skipper Dhoni in the inaugural season. While CSK has always retained captain Dhoni,  vice-captain Suresh Raina and Ravindra Jadeja the CSK was banned for two years after Gurunath Meiyappan, son-in-law of ex-BCCI chairperson N Srinivasan and owner of CSK got indicted for illegal betting during the 2013 IPL. On 24 February 2016, the Supreme Court of India agreed to hear a plea for lifting the ban on the Chennai Super Kings and the team was allowed to resume its IPL participation in 2018.

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Here's a look back at the CSK journey till date

In 2019, CSK made history by reaching its 8th IPL final while winners  Mumbai Indians (MI) followed it with 4 final appearances. In the four finals they have faced each other till date - MI have beaten CSK 3 teams. MI's fourth victory in 2017 was against Rising Pune Supergiant - which featured Dhoni. CSK itself- under MS Dhoni's able leadership has played eight finals but only won the IPL thrice, while ending as runners-up on 5 separate occasions. 

• 2008:  In the first edition of the IPL, CSK started as favourites and soared to reach the finals against Rajasthan Royals-led by former Australian skipper Shane Warne. While  Yusuf Pathan's stellar bowling performance restricting CSK yo 163, stopped CSK from winning the match, Rajasthan Royals lifted their only IPL trophy.
• 2009: Facing the disadvantage of having an injured Andrew Flintoff, CSK entered the semifinals of the IPL. Their run to enter the second consecutive IPL finals was cut short by  Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) who beat them by 6 wickets.
• 2010: The rise of CSK as an IPL champion was seen as CSK lifted its maiden IPL trophy by defeating Mumbai Indians. Man of the match Suresh Raina's 57 not out helped CSK post a 168 total, which could not be overtaken by MI inspite of skipper Sachin Tendulkar's 48-run stint.
• 2011: Galloping to its third IPL final, CSK won its second IPL title defeating RCB with a 58-run victory. Helped by Man of the match Murali Vijay's 95 and Michael Hussey's 63, CSK posted a huge total of 205, which not be surpassed by the Daniel Vettori-led team.
• 2012: In its 4th appearance at an IPL final, CSK lost to Kolkata Knight riders inspite of  Suresh Raina's 78-run stint. 
• 2013: The final held at Kolkata proved too strenuous for Dhoni's boys, as Man-of-the-match Kieron Pollard (60) single-handedly took MI to 148. Though Dhoni posted a respectable 63 runs, MI won the final by 23 runs- similar to 2010 final.
• 2014: CSK performed the worst in this season after being knocked off in the playoffs itself, losing to  Kings XI Punjab.
• 2015: In its sixth final appearance, CSK again lost to MI which posted a huge total of 202/5 helped by Man of the Match Rohit Sharma's 50 run stint.  The target proved too much for Dhoni's men as they were able to muster only 161
• 2018: Returning after a 2-year ban, the CSK lions roared to their third victory thanks to Man of the match Shane Watson's 51-ball-century. With 9 balls to spare, CSK easily chased SRH's total of 178.
• 2019: In a nail-biting finish, similar to the 2017 Dhoni-featuring Pune Supergiants vs MI final, CSK lost to Mumbai Indians by one run. Dubbed the aging team, CSK managed to make only 148 to MI's meager 147, failing to defend their title.

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Dhoni could lead CSK till 2022: CSK CFO

In a recent interview, chief executive Kasi Viswanathan said that the former India skipper could lead CSK until the 2022 IPL. “Yes. We can expect M.S. Dhoni to be part of both (2020 and 2021 IPL seasons) and probably for even the next year. 2022,” Viswanathan said to India Today. The 39-year-old who was on a sabbatical since India lost to New Zealand in the World Cup semifinal by 18 runs, announced his retirement from International cricket confirming several critics' musing about when he would hand his gloves.

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