Chennai Super Kings captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni arrived in Chennai to join the defending champions on Tuesday ahead of the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 season. The team shared a picture of Dhoni, who led them to their fifth title last season, exiting a vehicle on social media, with the caption ”#THA7A Dharisanam!” Speculation is rife that this season might be Dhoni’s final one as a player.

Dhoni guided CSK to a record-breaking fifth title the previous season, culminating in a thrilling five-wicket victory over Gujarat Titans in the final. Despite being dismissed for a golden duck in the title clash, the ‘Captain Cool’ saw Ravindra Jadeja through to a victory with ten runs off the last two balls. Following the historic win, Dhoni joyfully hoisted Jadeja onto his shoulder in a heartwarming moment that quickly spread across social media.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni: Arrival and Speculations for IPL 2024

Notably, the 42-year-old battled a knee injury throughout the 2023 season and received thunderous cheers every time he stepped onto the pitch. He compared his vintage performance of 104 runs from 12 innings the previous season to his remarkable strike rate of 182.46 in IPL 2023, smashing three fours and ten sixes.

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Speculations swirled that IPL 2023 would be Dhoni’s final season with CSK, especially after leading his team to a remarkable fifth championship. However, Dhoni assured his large fan following that he would indeed participate in IPL 2024, aiming to show his gratitude to supporters for their unwavering support.

Last year, the 42-year-old typically batted towards the end of CSK innings. The team commenced their pre-season training camp on Saturday, with the first batch of players arriving the day before.

Deepak Chahar, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Simarjeet Singh, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, Mukesh Choudhary, Prashant Solanki, Ajay Mandal, Shaik Rasheed, and Nishant Sindhu (all-rounders) have already joined the squad. CSK will kick off their IPL 2024 campaign against Royal Challengers Bangalore on March 22.