"Two Surprises...": Faf Du Plessis On Chennai Super Kings' Mid-Season Captaincy Change And MS Dhoni

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) are one franchise who like to go with the same combination in every game and very rarely, they opt for key changes during an Indian Premier League (IPL) season. However, before the start of the ongoing edition, CSK appointed Ravindra Jadeja as the captain and then eight matches later, MS Dhoni was given back the reins after Jadeja stepped down in order to focus on his own game.

Royal Challengers Bangalore captain Faf du Plessis who has been a part of CSK, said that he was surprised with the sequence of events and how the franchise opted for a mid-season captaincy change.

"I am surprised that the captaincy change happened mid-season, but I was also surprised at the way it happened the way before the season. So, it is like two surprises just almost canceling each other out," said du Plessis on RCB's show 'Bold Diaries' before the game between RCB and CSK.

"Obviously, it is no secret that when MS is there and he is the captain, he does get the best out of the players, and that has been a big part of CSK's success," he further stated.

On Saturday, CSK's official statement regarding the captaincy change stated: "Ravindra Jadeja has decided to relinquish captaincy to focus and concentrate more on his game and has requested MS Dhoni to lead CSK. MS Dhoni has accepted to lead CSK in the larger interest and to allow Jadeja to focus on his game."

Talking about the game between RCB and CSK, the latter were not able to chase down 174 and, in the end, they stumbled to a 13-run loss. For CSK, Devon Conway top-scored with 56 but it was not enough to take the MS Dhoni-led side over the line.

Harshal Patel was adjudged as Man Of The Match after he returned with figures of 3-35. Earlier, Mahipal Lomror and Dinesh Karthik played knocks of 42 and 26 to help RCB post 173/8 in 20 overs.

With this win, RCB moved to the fourth spot in the points table while CSK are at the ninth position.

Topics mentioned in this article

Chennai Super Kings Royal Challengers Bangalore IPL 2022 MS Dhoni Ravindra Jadeja Faf du Plessis Cricket