"I think captaincy burdened his prep and performances" - MS Dhoni on Ravindra Jadeja

MS Dhoni, who returned as Chennai Super Kings' skipper for Sunday's clash against Sunrisers Hyderabad, opined that the captaincy took a toll on Ravindra Jadeja. The keeper-batter revealed that the all-rounder somewhere knew that the responsibility was coming hard on him.

On Saturday, Jadeja handed over the captaincy duties to MS Dhoni after a string of poor results. Under the Saurashtra all-rounder, the defending champions won only two games out of eight. Jadeja's own form with the bat and ball has been poor, affecting the Super Kings' chances.

Speaking to the host broadcaster after a 13-run victory over Hyderabad, Dhoni admitted that the burden of captaincy and its demands hampered Jadeja's performances. The 40-year old believes that the captain has to ensure their form is not in the doldrums.

The veteran said, as quoted by ESPN Cricinfo:

"Once you become captain, it means a lot of demands come in. But it affected his mind as the tasks grew. I think captaincy burdened his prep and performances. So it was a gradual transition. Spoon-feeding doesn't really help the captain, on the field you have to take those crucial decisions and you have to take responsibility for those decisions. Once you become the captain, we have to take care of many things and that also includes your own game."

Jadeja, who played as a non-captain in Sunday's game in Pune, didn't impact the game much. He remained not-out on 1 after facing only a single ball and delivered three overs for 15 runs with no wickets. The 33-year old averages a shade over 20 with the bat and over 40 with the ball.

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"I think Jadeja knew last season that he would be captaining this year" - MS Dhoni

MS Dhoni leads his troops off the field. (Credits: Twitter)

The former Indian skipper further claimed he let the all-rounder make his decisions after guiding him through the first two matches. He believes part of Jadeja's struggles also included his fielding, an area in which CSK fared poorly.

Dhoni added:

"I think Jadeja knew last season that he would be captaining this year. For the first two games, I simply oversaw his work and let him be later. After that, I insisted that he take his own decisions and bear responsibility for them. Even if you relieve the captaincy and if you are at your best and that's what we want."

"We were also losing a great fielder, we are struggling for a deep midwicket fielder, still we have dropped 17-18 catches and that's a matter of concern."

With 122 wins, the Ranchi-born player is the most successful captain in IPL history. He led the Super Kings to all four of their titles.

CSK will take on the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in their next game on May 4 at the MCA Stadium in Pune.