Captain Cool Mahendra Singh Dhoni has handed over the captaincy reins at Chennai Super Kings (CSK) to Ravindra Jadeja, ahead of the start of the 15th season of the Indian Premier League (IPL). CSK made the official announcement through its Twitter account.
"MS Dhoni has decided to hand over the leadership of Chennai Super Kings and picked Ravindra Jadeja to lead the team. Jadeja has been an integral part of Chennai Super Kings since 2012. Dhoni will continue to represent Chennai Super Kings this season and beyond," CSK said in an official statement.
Why did Dhoni step down as CSK Captain?
CSK CEO Kasi Viswanathan revealed that Dhoni made the decision on Thursday and that it was on his mind for some time now. Viswanathan pointed out that Dhoni wanted a seamless transition and felt this was the right time to pass the torch to Jadeja.
"MS Dhoni was thinking about it. He felt it is the right time to hand over captaincy to Jaddu [Jadeja]. He feels Jaddu is also in prime form of his career and it is the ideal time for him to lead CSK. What will be good for the franchise must be [in the] back of his mind," Viswanathan told ESPNCricinfo.
Earlier today, Sunil Gavaskar hinted that Ravindra Jadeja could be the next captain of the CSK.
"If in the odd game MS Dhoni decides to take a break, I won't be surprised if the mantle of captaincy will be handed over to Jadeja," said Gavaskar.