IPL franchise Chennai Super Kings (CSK) has firmly denied rumours claiming that former captain and current player MS Dhoni asked for a large ownership stake in the franchise, with CEO Kasi Viswanathan calling the reports completely untrue.
Last week, reports had claimed that Dhoni wanted to buy a stake in CSK in order to deepen his long-term bond with the team. However, according to those reports, the deal never went through because the CSK management didn’t agree to his conditions.
It was said that Dhoni initially asked for a 25% stake, while the CSK owners were only willing to offer 3%. He reportedly brought his demand down to 20% and then further to 18% but the management’s counter-offers only moved up slightly, to 4% and then 5.5%.
Most of these discussions were said to have happened informally, through conversations rather than any written proposal or formal agreement. This disagreement reportedly created some tension between Dhoni and the franchise, leading to speculation about whether he would continue playing for the five-time champions.
Kasi Viswanathan clearly stated that these rumours have no truth to them at all. Dhoni had been retained by CSK for Rs 4 crore ahead of the IPL 2025 mega auction, classified as an “uncapped” player under a revived BCCI rule that treats cricketers retired for five years or more this way. However, he missed the entire 2026 season due to injury.
Kasi Viswanathan also clarified that Dhoni has not given a final “no” about playing in the IPL 2027. Although the India legend is 45 years old, well beyond the typical retirement age in the IPL and has become more prone to injuries, CSK has shown no interest in pushing him toward retirement, continuing to give him major influence in how the team functions both on and off the field.
Responding to speculation about MS Dhoni possibly not playing next season, Kasi Viswanathan said that since Dhoni has not confirmed he won’t be playing, everyone should simply wait and see.
Meanwhile, CSK also currently doesn’t have a head coach, following Stephen Fleming’s exit from the role.
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