As the IPL 2026 dates draw near, the speculation regarding the captaincy of the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) has ramped up. The veteran and former skipper, MS Dhoni, is unlikely to lead the side this time around; however, the chances of Ruturaj Gaikwad retaining his leadership role are high. After the arrival of Sanju Samson, the captaincy debate has been heating up. Sanju Samson, who has been in impeccable form in his career, has currently been favoured to lead the side. But the former Indian player, Mohammad Kaif, thinks otherwise; he opines that giving leadership to Sanju Samson will affect his form this season. Moreover, it will be too soon for the CSK management to hand over the captaincy duties to the former Rajasthan Royals skipper. Also Read: Samson or Gaikwad? AB de Villiers Reveals His Pick for CSK Captain in IPL 2026 On his YouTube channel, Kaif said: "But I don’t think CSK will make the mistake of giving Sanju Samson the captaincy right now, because he has just joined. You can’t expect him to do everything at once, bat and win matches, keep wickets, and also captain the side. You don’t want to put that entire burden on him. The plan is to slowly let him grow into the role and eventually step into Dhoni’s shoes. That’s the long-term vision.” Ruturaj was ruled out of the latter half of the tournament last season, while MS Dhoni continued to lead the team in his absence. However, Kaif thinks that the management will not alter or make many changes this season. He further adds: "So there won’t be too many changes there. If responsibility has been given to Gaikwad, they won’t rush things. They will back him, and I feel that giving the captaincy to Sanju right now would be the wrong decision. I’ll explain the reason. The reason is that Sanju still doesn’t fully understand Chennai’s culture. He doesn’t yet know the expectations of Chennai’s fans or the dynamics of the players.” After Sanju arrives in the team, it is still not clear if MS Dhoni will continue to take the gloves for the team or if Sanju Samson will showcase his wicketkeeping skills. Sanju has been in brilliant form lately in this format. He was awarded the Player of the Tournament for his brilliance in the recently concluded T20 World Cup. The kind of experience he brings to the team, CSK will surely benefit, and will be hopeful to see him deliver his best in his debut season for the franchise.