Chennai Super Kings head coach Stephen Fleming revealed that MS Dhoni “had no hesitation” in taking over the captaincy once again after Ruturaj Gaikwad was ruled out due to an elbow injury. With Gaikwad sidelined, the franchise turned to their most trusted leader, and according to Fleming, Dhoni stepped in without second thoughts. Speaking to the media ahead of their Friday clash against Kolkata Knight Riders, Fleming revealed Dhoni's reaction to the captaincy call. "He had no hesitation to step up and help guide us out of this if we can," he said. MS Dhoni had captained the side from 2008 to 2023 and had won five IPL titles with the franchise. In 2023, he stepped down from the captaincy to hand it over to Ruturaj Gaikwad ahead of the 2024 season. Also READ: Top 5 Key Player Battles to Watch in CSK vs KKR - IPL 2025 Match 25 In 2024, CSK finished fifth after being knocked out by RCB in their last league match. However, the start of 2025 season hasn't been ideal for the team either, as they have lost four out of their five games and find themselves in the 9th spot in the points table. 🦁7️⃣ @ 7️⃣PM🔜The Return of the Yellove Dragon 🐉#WhistlePodu 🦁💛 pic.twitter.com/WZ95F9Nl9c — Chennai Super Kings (@ChennaiIPL) April 10, 2025 'We're disappointed': Fleming on Gaikwad's injury Ruturaj Gaikwad sustained a blow when he was hit by a short ball by Jofra Archer when the team took on the Rajasthan Royals. Since his injury, Gaikwad had managed to feature in two matches with pain. Speaking about his injury, Fleming said that the team is disappointed. "So we're disappointed and feel for him. We appreciate the efforts that he's gone to in terms of trying to play, but, he will be out of the tournament," he said. Explaining the injury, Fleming said that Gaikwad was operating with pain. "He got hit in Guwahati (vs RR). He's been operating with an amount of pain. We got an X-ray, which was inconclusive, and we had an MRI, which revealed a fracture in his elbow, in the radial neck," he said. CSK has not announced a replacement yet for Gaikwad. When asked about the potential replacement, Fleming said that the team would take a decision soon. "We'll look at replacements. We've got some good players in the squad that have been with us a while, so we'll look from within first. But yeah, there is an opportunity to see how we can enhance the squad, probably moving forward into subsequent years," he said. Notably, CSK had picked up only seven overseas players during the 2025 mega auction. The team can still replace Ruturaj Gaikwad with an overseas option. Also, CSK had recently called up Mumbai batter Ayush Mhatre for trials. The team might look into him as a potential replacement as well.