MS Dhoni has set a new Indian Premier League record as the Chennai Super Kings captain became the first player to feature in 200 matches in the T20 league. Dhoni achieved the milestone when he walked out for the toss of their crunch IPL 2020 encounter against Rajasthan Royals in Abu Dhabi.
Monday’s encounter is also MS Dhoni’s 170th match for Chennai Super Kings in the IPL. Dhoni played 30 games for the now-defunct Rising Pune Supergiant between 2016 and 2017 as CSK were serving a 2-year suspension.
MS Dhoni is on top of the charts and Rohit Sharma is not far behind with 197 matches in the IPL. Suresh Raina missed out on an opportunity to become the first player to feature in 200 IPL matches. Raina, who has played 193 matches in the T20 tournament, pulled out of CSK’s campaign in the UAE due to personal reasons.
Most matches in IPL — Top 5
MS Dhoni – 200
Rohit Sharma – 197
Suresh Raina – 193
Dinesh Karthik – 191
Virat Kohli – 186
MS Dhoni is the 2nd most successful captain in the IPL, having led CSK to 3 IPL titles while Rohit Sharma is on top of the chart with 4 IPL titles. However, the CSK skipper is the most successful captain in terms of win percentage — 107 wins in 183 matches as captain in the IPL.
MS Dhoni led Chennai Super Kings to the final in the inaugural edition of IPL wherein they lost to Rajasthan Royals. Dhoni made sure CSK did not falter at the final step again when they reached the final in 2010. CSK are the only side to have defended the IPL title as Dhoni led the side in another successful campaign in 2011.
Dhoni and CSK journey in the IPL has not always been rosy. In the ‘darkest phase of his career’, Dhoni had to stay away from CSK and the emotion surrounding the franchise for 2 years when it was suspended over betting activities of its key official.
Nonetheless, Dhoni and CSK roared back to form, winning the title in their comeback year in 2018. Dhoni nearly led them to another title in 2019 only to be stopped by Mumbai Indians who sealed a 1-run win when the two powerhouses met in last year’s final.
However, CSK’s campaign in IPL 2020 has been far from impressive. The 3-time champions, who are missing Raina and Harbhajan Singh, have struggled for consistency. With only 3 wins from 9 matches, Dhoni’s men are in danger of losing out on the play-offs spot for the first time in the history of IPL.