Chennai, May 1 (NationPress) Former Australia captain Aaron Finch emphasized the remarkable presence of MS Dhoni as he approaches the twilight of his career and encouraged fans to catch Chennai Super Kings' matches while the iconic leader is still active.

At 43 years old, the former Indian captain continues to showcase his incredible reflexes both behind the stumps and with the bat in the current IPL 2025. So far, Dhoni has recorded four stumpings and as many catches during this season.

Last month, Dhoni notched another milestone in his illustrious career by becoming the first player in IPL history to achieve 200 fielding dismissals, a feat he accomplished during CSK's match against Lucknow Super Giants on April 14. With the bat, he has scored 151 runs in 10 games, with a top score of 30, including several explosive innings.

“When Dhoni stepped down as captain a few years ago, I doubt he anticipated having to face these challenges again. However, this season has not favored CSK. At 43, he's not playing much cricket aside from the IPL — yet every moment he graces the field is enchanting. The atmosphere when he exits the dressing room… when he comes in to bat… it’s extraordinary. I urge every cricket enthusiast — if you can, make it to a CSK game while MS Dhoni is still in action,” Finch expressed on JioHotstar.

Following a four-wicket defeat against Punjab Kings, five-time champions CSK recorded their eighth loss of the season, becoming the first team eliminated from playoff contention. Former Indian pacer Varun Aaron assessed CSK’s performance, stating that the team struggled in the middle overs and could not rely on Dhoni indefinitely.

“I believe poor form has impacted the entire squad, particularly the bowling unit. CSK heavily relied on Pathirana to secure wickets in the late stages and defend totals, but he has been underperforming. He has altered his action somewhat, is missing his yorkers, and has bowled 31 extras this tournament — that’s considerable for a frontline bowler.

“With the bat, they’ve struggled to find momentum in the middle overs. Brevis has injected some high-energy play, but prior to that, it was lacking. They must revisit their strategy from the auction and assess what went wrong. They don’t have someone like Tristan Stubbs or Tim David to finish innings. Yes, MS Dhoni is present - but relying on him for 18 years is unsustainable,” Aaron stated.

Finch also expressed his astonishment at Nathan Ellis not being a consistent presence in the CSK lineup this season, saying, “If CSK acknowledges that things have not gone as planned, then indeed - they need to reevaluate. I can’t believe Nathan Ellis hasn’t featured more frequently. He’s a world-class bowler capable of excelling in all three phases. Meanwhile, Pathirana has struggled to perform as he once did.”

“CSK has lacked the ability to finish with the bat - if they had added 20 more runs today, the outcome would have been quite different. I genuinely believed they had enough runs until the heavy dew arrived late in the game. Overall, the fielding has been subpar, with missed catches. That puts you at a disadvantage - when that occurs, you need to execute a near-perfect game to secure a win,” he added.

Chennai will next face Royal Challengers Bengaluru in a reversed matchup on Saturday at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.