IPL 2026: MS Dhoni training for 4.5 hours for ‘one last hurrah’ with CSK

A few days ago, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) CEO Kasi Viswanathan confirmed that MS Dhoni won’t be retiring from the Indian Premier League (IPL). With the 2026 mini auction just around the corner, this was a major boost for Dhoni fanatics.

The upcoming season has been built up as ‘one last hurrah’ for Thala, with several former CSK players and pundits even claiming that Dhoni might just retire midway through the season. Whether that happens or not can’t be ascertained right now.

However, we know that Dhoni has been training for the IPL 2026 season. According to the Times of India, the IPL legend has been training for the tournament since September. Despite battling age and injuries, Dhoni has been giving hours and hours to the sport.

MS Dhoni’s training routine for IPL 2026

Dhoni has been visiting the Jharkhand State Cricket Association (JSCA) International Stadium regularly for the last 2 months. The stadium is about 10 kilometres away from his home in Ranchi.

“He is just doing the Mahi things that he has done all his life — working hard,” a JSCA official told TOI.

But what is Dhoni’s routine? He reaches the stadium in the afternoon, around 1:30 pm, and goes to the gym for 1 hour. From there, he hits the nets. For the next 2 hours, Dhoni focuses on his batting, with the major focus on power-hitting since he hasn’t played more than a handful of balls in the IPL for the last couple of seasons.

Since the Ranji Trophy is underway, he doesn’t always get to practice on the centre wicket, but when the opportunity arises, he does match simulations there. To cap off his practice, Dhoni spends about 30 minutes swimming and then leaves for home at 6. Thereby, spending 4 and a half hours training.

“His routine has been fixed for the last two months. He comes to the stadium at 1:30 pm, hits the gym for an hour, then pads up and does power-hitting training in the nets for two hours. If the centre wicket is available and no match is happening, he also does match simulations. Mahi signs out after a swimming session for another half an hour. He leaves the complex at 6 pm,” he added.

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