Barely two days after MS Dhoni fans rejoiced knowing that the Chennai Super Kings would possibly be playing his final IPL game in Chennai, meaning IPL 2021 would not be his last season as players, the former India captain sort of made a U-turn on the decision, hinting that next year, Dhoni may not be seen as a player. During the toss of the CSK vs Punjab Kings IPL match in Dubai on Thursday, Dhoni was asked about his future at CSK, to which he responded by saying the following.

“Well, you can see me in yellow, but whether I’ll be playing for CSK there are a lot of uncertainties around it for a simple reason that we have two new teams coming up. We don’t know the retention policy. We don’t know how many foreigners, Indian players we can retain, the money cap that every player will be cutting from the kitty. So, there are a lot of uncertainties. Unless the rules are in place you can’t really decide that. We will wait for it to happen and hopefully it will be good for everyone,” Dhoni answered presenter Danny Morrison.

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The uncertainty Dhoni pointed towards could refer to the possibility that he could well be done as a player and potentially take up a new role. This thought was echoed by former Australia and CSK all-rounder Shane Watson, who reckons that going by the statement Dhoni made, it is a big possibility that IPL 2021 is the last we see of Dhoni as a player.

“Hearing that answer from MS to me was very different to the answer he gave last year where he was very confident that yes, he will be definitely be back. Hearing him sort of talk about things such as let us see what happens at the auction and all the different sorts of permutations with two new teams coming in, that for me more so suggests that he will be in yellow still but potentially not as a player and more as a mentor, which still is a huge role in the franchise,” Watson, who played under Dhoni, said on Star Sports.

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And there is every reason to believe so. Firstly, Dhoni will be close to 41 by the time the next IPL takes place. Furthermore, given the fact that a mega auction is lined up for IPL 2022, where teams could come in for a total rejig, could mean that CSK might have no place for Dhoni as the franchise ushers into a new era.

If that is indeed the case, what Dhoni hinted at could be true, as he could switch into the role of a mentor with the team. With Dhoni already appointed as the Indian cricket team’s mentor for the T20 World Cup, by the time next year’s IPL takes place, he would have eased into that role.