IPL 2026, CSK vs PBKS Today Match: Former Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain MS Dhoni has been ruled out of today’s Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 clash against Punjab Kings at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai due to a calf strain. The franchise had earlier confirmed that Dhoni would miss up to two weeks of action after sustaining the injury ahead of the season. "MS Dhoni is currently undergoing rehabilitation for a calf strain. As a result, he is likely to miss the first two weeks of the TATA IPL 2026. Get well soon, Thala!" CSK wrote in a statement on X (formerly Twitter) on March 28, 2026.
This marks the second consecutive match he has missed. He was also absent from CSK’s opening match against Rajasthan Royals earlier this week.
Although the 44-year-old was spotted during a training session on Thursday, raising hopes of an early return, team management has opted to take a cautious approach with his recovery.
No official return date has been announced, but Dhoni’s progress in training suggests he could be back in action sooner than initially expected.
Punjab Kings won the toss and chose to bowl first. CSK made one change, bringing in Prashant Veer in place of Matthew Short, while Punjab Kings have fielded an unchanged XI.
Playing XI:
Chennai Super Kings (Playing XI): Sanju Samson(w), Ruturaj Gaikwad(c), Ayush Mhatre, Sarfaraz Khan, Shivam Dube, Kartik Sharma, Prashant Veer, Noor Ahmad, Anshul Kamboj, Matt Henry, Khaleel Ahmed
Punjab Kings: Prabhsimran Singh (wicketkeeper), Cooper Connolly, Shreyas Iyer (captain), Nehal Wadhera, Shashank Singh, Marcus Stoinis, Marco Jansen, Xavier Bartlett, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal.
Punjab Kings Impact subs: Suryansh Shedge, Priyansh Arya, Vishnu Vinod, Pravin Dubey, Hemant Brar
Chennai Super Kings Impact subs: Jamie Overton, Rahul Chahar, Matthew Short, Ramakrishna Ghosh, Gurjapneet Singh
