CSK's batting Michael Hussey has revealed that MS Dhoni isn't present at the venues on match days to ensure his presence doesn't come across as a distraction. Dhoni, who is yet to play his first game of the season, hasn't been seen at the ground during CSK's matches in the ongoing tournament despite attending pre-match net sessions. Hussey revealed that as much as he would love to have the veteran's presence in the dressing room on matchdays, the decision was ultimately Dhoni's.

"He's such a team-orientated guy," Hussey pointed out on Friday (May 1) ahead of CSK's crucial clash against MI. "He always wants what's best for the team and he was worried that if he came there'd be a bit too much of a distraction. Obviously the cameras would be on him a lot. The crowd would be cheering for him and things like that. And he really wanted the team to just be able to go about their job, do our thing. Whether that's right or wrong, that's not my decision to sort of make. But that's the thinking behind with Dhoni not wanting to come to the matches.

“Obviously he's been watching very closely back home. I personally love having him around the dressing room. He offers so much wisdom. He offers so much confidence to the rest of the guys. So he's obviously at training all the time and always a bubbly personality around training and offers a lot of his experience to the players there. But it was just a case he didn't want to see himself as a distraction to the rest of the team and that's why he decided on game day just to sort of stay away.”

While Dhoni's impending bow in IPL 2026 has dominated headlines whenever CSK have stepped onto the field this season, Hussey indicated that the wait might not be longer. "I don't know if it's tomorrow or maybe the next match after that but he's progressing really well," Hussey said. "I know he's been upping his running speeds and that was probably the sticking point. I think we're very confident from a skill perspective with his batting and his wicketkeeping. But it was just making sure that he could maintain good running power particularly towards the back end of an innings where he's going to have to scamper those ones and twos. So as soon as he's got the confidence in his calf then I'm sure he'll give it the tick to ready to go. And so we're kind of guided by him at the moment. But we're waiting. I think all of Chennai's waiting. All the fans are waiting and hoping."

Hussey also admitted that CSK are still working out how to best use the impact player rule. CSK have already copped flak for using it very early in their innings on a couple of occasions this season with the move backfiring both times. "I think we've been experimenting a little bit," Hussey said. "We've had obviously four substitutes there ready to go in according to the situation of the match. Sometimes it's worked really well like for example the game Akeal Hosein came in and bowled extremely well in one particular match as the impact sub and then there's other times it hasn't quite worked out. Like in the last match it didn't quite work out for us.

"So it's something that we're talking about a lot behind the scenes about how best we use it. Do we use it in a strategic way like we have been by trying to insert a certain player in at the right time to have the biggest impact in the game. But then on the other hand is that having an impact and destabilising the other players in the team such as your Brevis or your Dube. So that's something that we're talking about a lot behind the scenes. And I think we're starting to sort of think okay well maybe we'd like to keep a bit more stability there through the year and then just use the impact player maybe towards the back end of the innings."