Veteran Indian off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin was asked about the possibility of MS Dhoni being retained by the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) as a potentially uncapped player. However, Dhoni hasn’t played international cricket since 2019. From the 2008 edition to IPL 2021, there was a rule in place that retired players for more than five years will play as uncapped players. And, according to a report from ESPNcricinfo, CSK suggested the meeting with the IPL governing council and the other owners that the rule needed to be brought back as well.

In a video on his YouTube channel, Ravichandran Ashwin said, “Will Dhoni play as an uncapped player? That’s a big question mark. The point is correct. He hasn’t played international cricket for many years. He has retired. So, he is an uncapped player. He is not a capped player. Can a player like Dhoni play as an uncapped player? That is another conversation. Obviously, if someone talks about Dhoni, everyone will talk about it.”

However, MS Dhoni was retained for ₹12 crore ahead of the IPL 2022 mega auction. If he was to be retained as an uncapped player as per the regulations of the earlier mega auction retentions, it would cost CSK only ₹4 crore. But most franchises were reportedly against bringing the rule back.

On this, Ravichandran Ashwin stated in the same video: “There is a new fun rule coming up that is going to change everything. I am saying this clearly. What do all the foreign players do? Skipping the mega auction. Today is the mega auction. I am going to farm in my city. Instead of coming to the auction, I will come to the mini-auction to build a house in Sydney for this mini-auction. Tomorrow, I am buying the Maldives. The day after tomorrow, I am buying a ship in Fiji. They have come to the mini-auction so far. What they are saying is that the highest value of an Indian player is your value. You can go for as much as you want.”