Hyderabad: He is the lifeblood of Chennai Super Kings. CSK cannot be imagined without him. But this time due to injury IPLMahendra Singh Dhoni has not been seen on the field so far.

But big news for CSK fans. Mahi can finally return to the field. Which match? Where? Against whom?

Fans’ curiosity may be quenched soon. Because Dhoni is fit to play. Chennai have a match against Sunrisers Hyderabad on April 18 in Hyderabad. Dhoni has also reached Hyderabad with the team. But not in this match, Dhoni can return next week.

MS Dhoni may return to the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) team on April 23. Dhoni has not played a single match in IPL 2026 so far due to injury. CSK have a game against Mumbai Indians on April 23, which will be their seventh match of the season. Dhoni is coming back, this is really good news for CSK. But it can also be bad news for one of the players. Because if Dhoni comes to the playing XI (Playing XI), one of the players will be left out of the final XI. Which player can Dhoni replace in Chennai’s playing XI (Playing XI)?

Dhoni IN, then who will be left out?

Captain Ruturaj Gaikwad as well as Chennai Super Kings (CSK) front row batsmen performed well. So Sanju Samson, Ayush Mathere and even Dewald Brevis are in the team. Gaekwad, on the other hand, is the captain, he is difficult to drop. In such a situation, the first 4 batsmen’s place seems to be assured.

On the other hand, talking about bowling, CSK team has already lost 2 main fast bowlers like Nathan Ellis and Khaleel Ahmed. Both have been ruled out of IPL 2026 due to injuries. Jamie Overton, Anshul Kamboj (Anshul Kamboj) will handle the bowling responsibility and Gurjapneet Singh (Gurjapneet Singh) will play the role of the third fast bowler for the time being. On the other hand, Noor Amed is the main spinner of the team. Khaleel Ahmed’s injury has left a bowling spot in the team vacant, which Dhoni will not be able to fill. No matter where Dhoni comes in to bat between numbers seven and nine, all five bowlers are guaranteed to be in the team.

So will Sarfaraz Khan (Sarfaraz Khan) take place?

Five bowlers and four top-order batsmen are guaranteed places in the Playing XI. There are only two vacancies in the middle order. As Shivam Dube has been the team’s leading finisher in the past few years, Dube’s place seems secure. It is believed that Sarfaraz Khan (Sarfaraz Khan) may lose his place in the Playing XI despite being in good form. Sarfraz has so far scored 122 runs at a strike rate of around 182 in five matches in IPL 2026.