Chennai Super Kings head coach Stephen Fleming has revealed why MS Dhoni was not available for the clash against Gujarat Titans at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Sunday, April 26, as he confirmed that the veteran wicketkeeper-batsman has suffered another setback in his recovery.

According to Fleming, Dhoni has suffered a fresh flare-up of calf pain, raising fresh doubts over his availability for the upcoming games. Dhoni has not been seen in the IPL so far this season after being ruled out due to a calf injury. CSK had earlier confirmed on social media that the former captain would miss the first two weeks of the campaign.

Anticipation was rising ahead of Sunday’s game, with fans hoping that Dhoni would make a comeback in Chepauk. However, these hopes were dashed when he was once again left out of the playing eleven.

Speaking after the match, Fleming said that CSK had attempted to speed up Dhoni’s recovery, but the injury resurfaced during the practice match.

Why did CSK choose to play it safe?

Fleming pointed out that Dhoni’s calf remains a major concern, especially because any serious strain could rule him out of the rest of the season. As a result, CSK opted to take a cautious approach rather than risk aggravating the injury in a competitive match.

“The calf is a tough one though. If he blows up and tears the calf again, he’ll be gone. So we moved on it early. In the warm-up game he tweaked it again. That’s my understanding, and since then he’s been working hard to get some movement into it. But there was a setback, so it took longer than we thought,” Fleming said.

The warm-up game was seen as a controlled environment in which CSK could assess Dhoni’s fitness, without exposing him to the demands of full-time cricket. IPL Stability. Once the discomfort returned, the team decided not to take any further risks.

GT suffered a crushing defeat

Earlier reports had suggested that Dhoni was also reluctant to upset the balance of the team and did not want to unnecessarily replace a young player. But CSK is struggling badly Defeat against Gujarat TitansHis absence was felt once again.

Having entered the game on the back of an impressive win over Mumbai Indians, CSK failed to build momentum. Gujarat put in a brilliant performance, with Sai Sudarshan taking the lead and GT securing a comfortable win.

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