IPL 2022: MS Dhoni hands over CSK captaincy to Ravindra Jadeja

In an expected move, the former Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has handed over the captaincy of the Chennai Super Kings to all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja ahead of the commencement of IPL 2022.

"MS Dhoni has decided to hand over the leadership of Chennai Super Kings and picked Ravindra Jadeja to lead the team," an official statement from CSK read.

The franchise also made it clear that despite the change in reins, Dhoni will continue to represent them in this season and beyond.

"Dhoni will continue to represent Chennai Super Kings this season and beyond," they said.

With this move, Ravindra Jadeja will become only the third player after Dhoni himself and Suresh Raina to lead CSK in their history. The 40-year-old Dhoni has been donning the yellow jersey and leading the team since the inception of IPL way back in 2008. When the team was banned for two years in 2016 and 2017, Dhoni plied his trade for the Rising Pune Supergiants (RPS) before returning to CSK.

IPL 2022 will only be the second time in history that MS Dhoni would not be seen captaining a team. The last time MS played as a player was during the 2017 season for RPS when he played under Australian Steve Smith after being stripped of the captaincy following an underwhelming campaign in 2016.