R Ashwin Shocks Fans As He Predicts MS Dhoni's Batting Number In IPL 2026

Former India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, who played for the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season, might have retired from Indian cricket, but he is keeping a close eye on his former franchise. Ashwin, who has turned into a full-time pundit since retirement, feels MS Dhoni will bat at a new position in the forthcoming season. Ashwin's prediction comes just days after Dhoni resumed cricket practice in the nets at Jharkhand Cricket State Association facilities.

"Dhoni looks set to play as he has already started practising. He's looking fit. Some said he may not play in the 11, or this might be his last season. But it looks like he got motivated seeing Imran Tahir. Looking at him, it doesn't look like he'll bat at No.9. He looks like he'll come out to bat at No. 3 in the Powerplay and be the enforcer, the way he has begun practice," Ashwin said light-heartedly in a video on his YouTube channel.

Dhoni remains one of the most versatile batters in Indian cricket history, having batted at virtually all positions in the batting order. He, however, cemented his role as a finisher, becoming one of the best in the world in the position.

At the No. 3 spot, however, he only batted eight times in his IPL career, with the latest being in 2022. His returns have been quite mediocre as per his standards, with 196 runs at a strike-rate of 124.84.

"They've scouted very well and boast a powerhouse of a batting lineup. Ruturaj Gaikwad, Sanju Samson, Ayush Mhatre, Dewald Brevis, Shivam Dube, Karthik Sharma, and Prashant Veer is a batting lineup, barring the inexperience in the last two, you ask how are teams going to stop this batting lineup? Even a 200 to 200 becomes really difficult for teams to stop CSK to," Ashwin added.

Topics mentioned in this article

Chennai Super Kings MS Dhoni IPL 2026 Cricket