When it first came out, I said one thing that IPL is in such a good position, aur koi masala daalne ki zaroorat nahi hai (there’s no need to spice it up further),” Dhoni said on Jio Hotstar.
“Games were already quite high-scoring, they were going well, the matches were quite competitive. We have seen it often in this format that matches end in five overs — you lose too many wickets, fail to make proper runs and the opposition wins easily.
“If you lose a few wickets early, more often than not you are out of the game. So, when this rule came, I felt it was not really needed at this point of time because TRP is up, the quality of cricket is good, good players were coming up but it was implemented. In a way, it helps me but it still doesn’t help me because I still do my keeping so I am not an impact player, I have to be involved in the game.
“Also, some people are saying that because of the impact player rule, games have become high-scoring. I think it is due to conditions. The extra batter gives you comfort. It’s not like because of that extra batter, you have scored a lot.”
The 43-year-old, under whom CSK won five IPL titles, handed over the leadership to Gaikwad at the beginning of the 2024 season. He said although he discusses things with Gaikwad, he refrains from persuading him to follow his advice.
“Ruturaj has been part of us for quite some time. His temperament is very good, he’s very calm, very composed. So those were the reasons we considered him for leadership.
“Before the start of the tournament, I also told him, ‘If I give you advice, it doesn’t mean you have to follow it. I will try to stay away as much as possible.’ During the season, a lot of people speculated that I was making the decisions in the background,” Dhoni recalled.