BCCI have made new retention rules ahead of the IPL 2025 mega auction. Including the RTM rule, every participating franchise can hold six players from their last season squad. So it is expecting to observe some big names on the auction table, including MS Dhoni. Chennai Super Kings can easily retin MS Dhoni as an uncapped player. But Ravichandran Ashwin has some different thoughts. R Ashwin said, “I’ll retain Dhoni as a normal capped player.”
MS Dhoni remain as a cornerpiller of IPL and Indian cricket. Leading the Chennai Super Kings (CSK), Dhoni has won five IPL titles (2010, 2011, 2018, 2021, and 2023), making him one of the most successful captains in IPL history. Known for his finishing ability and sharp cricketing mind, Dhoni has been instrumental in CSK’s consistent performances throughout the tournament.
Dhoni has played over 250 IPL matches, scoring more than 5,000 runs, with a strike rate of around 135 and a highest score of 84*. His calm leadership and ability to manage high-pressure situations have been critical to CSK’s dominance in the tournament.
“I’ll give a fresh perspective. I will retain Rutu (Ruturaj), Jaddu (Ravindra), Dube, Pathirana and Dhoni. I’ll retain Dhoni as a normal capped player, not as an uncapped player. I’ll retain these five and will get Sameer Rizvi as my sixth retention,” Ashwin said on his YouTube channel.
Apart from Dhoni, Ashwin wants to relay on young Sameer Rizvi. “By retaining Sameer Rizvi, your future looks sorted as well. He batted brilliantly in the UP league. He’s very talented, just like Nitish Reddy. So you go to the auction and buy three bowlers and a foreign batter,” he added. Sameer Rizvi will be on the uncapped catagory playes. So Ashwin suggested that CSK should go for Rizvi as uncapped player, not for Dhoni. Rizvi has potential to be next big thing of Chennai Super Kings as well as Indian cricket. Rizvi have played some quickfire innings in the UPT20 League. In the tournament he scored 468 runs in 13 matches and finished as the second leading run-scorer of the tournament.