Du Plessis ‘surprised’ by CSK’s decision to reinstate Dhoni as captain | Cricket

Chennai Super Kings’ decision of having Ravindra Jadeja at the helm and MS Dhoni as nothing more than a player had to be abandoned halfway through the league stage of the 2022 Indian Premier League (IPL). CSK announced before their previous match against Sunrisers Hyderabad that Dhoni had returned as captain, with Jadeja prioritising making sure that he performs as well as he can as an ace all-rounder. 

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Under Jadeja, CSK got off to a disastrous start, winning just two out of eight matches.  Letting Faf du Plessis go has often been cited as a mistake that CSK made as they struggled to consistently get runs from their opening partnership while Jadeja was captain. 

“I’m 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 canceling each other out,” said Du Plessis, who is captaining the Royal Challengers Bangalore this season, in the franchise’s ‘Bold Diaries’ show.  

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“Obviously, there’s 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 said. 

“So that’s a challenge for us, to make sure that it isn’t a factor tomorrow,” said Du Plessis. 

CSK’s playoff chances took a major hit after du Plessis-led RCB beat them on Wednesday. CSK are placed ninth on the table and will need something of a miracle to go through to the playoffs. RCB, on the other hand, returned to winning ways and also got its position back in the top four after a hat-trick of defeats had pegged them back.

RCB are currently at number four with 12 points in 9 matches.