MS Dhoni lands in Chennai weeks ahead of IPL mega auction

Former Indian captain MS Dhoni has landed in Chennai a fortnight before the mega auction for the impending 2022 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) shared a heartwarming post to welcome the legendary cricketer.

The CSK captain is hence expected to join the franchise at the auction table during the bidding war which will take place on February 12 and 13. Dhoni has played a key role for the franchise not just as a skipper, but has also helped the management in picking players at the auction table for years.

"The (Yellow) heart goes smiling (grinning face with smiling eyes), every single time! #ThalaDharisanam #WhistlePodu," tweeted CSK. 

Chennai Super Kings, who will enter the 15th season as the defending champions, have retained Ravindra Jadeja, their skipper, young Ruturaj Gaikwad and all-rounder Moeen Ali ahead of the auction leaving them with a purse of INR 48 crore. Jadeja was their first-choice retention with the Indian all-rounder taking INR 16 crore while Dhoni was retained for INR 12 crore, Moeen for 8 crore and Gaikwad for 6 crore.

Earlier, there were speculations over the 40-year-old's participation in the 2022 season and the veteran cricketer had even remained tight-lipped on his participation after Chennai beat Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL 2021 final in Dubai.

"Again I've said it before, it depends on BCCI. With two new teams coming in, we have to decide what is good for CSK. It's not about me being there in top-three or four. It's about making a strong core to ensure the franchise doesn't suffer. The core group, we have to have a hard look to see who can contribute for the next 10 years," Dhoni told host broadcaster Star Sports at the post-match presentation.

However, it is yet to be seen whether Dhoni will be leading the Chennai side this season.