File photo of MS Dhoni© BCCI
There has been a lot of chatter surrounding the possible retention rules ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025. Media reports claimed that the franchises have not agreed on a number as of now and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has also not announced anything officially. However, according to Cricbuzz, Chennai Super Kings will be retaining Dhoni irrespective of how many retentions they get ahead of the new season. There have been reports that BCCI are looking to introduce a rule that may put Dhoni in the 'uncapped' category. However, the report claimed that the five-time IPL winners are willing to retain the services of the veteran wicket-keeper batter irrespective of any rule change.
Dhoni was picked in the first-ever IPL auction by CSK and the former India skipper has been retained every time by the franchise. Under his leadership, CSK won the IPL title five times. However, he decided to step down from captaincy in 2024 and he was replaced by young batter Ruturaj Gaikwad.
Meanwhile, Australian great Ricky Ponting hailed former captain Virat Kohli's "big role" in revolutionizing Test cricket in India and said the country's batters don't fear the big stage anymore, evidence of which is their success in challenging conditions overseas.
Ponting also lauded the contributions of former head coach Rahul Dravid, who stepped down from the post after guiding India to the T20 World Cup title triumph in June.
"Going back to Kohli's start of captaincy, (he) played a big role in turning the cricket around, and (Rahul) Dravid has continued the same in the recent four years. The influence of someone like that (Kohli) around a team would be great, and they've got star players," Ponting told Sky Sports.
Under Kohli's captaincy, India became the first Asian side to win a Test series in Australia, besides recording some memorable wins elsewhere.
With his aggressive captaincy, Kohli made everyone believe that the Indian team can win overseas as well, and his confidence rubbed on the side even when he was not around.
During the last Test series in Australia in 2020-21, Kohli left for India after the first match due to the birth of his daughter Vamika. But India, under the captaincy of Ajinkya Rahane, battled injuries and the absence of key players to eke out a historic 2–1 series win.
(With PTI inputs)