MS Dhoni shows a lot of backing and faith in Dube, Jadeja, Rahane and Rayudu to do the job before he comes in: Mike Hussey

MS Dhoni has kept demoting himself down the order in the batting unit of late, and he has been very vocal about the same. In one of the post-match presentations, he said that he has told the boys to not lose their wickets early and not make him run, so as to make everyone’s job easy. Since the start of the season, Dhoni has been nursing a knee injury but nevertheless, the veteran is seen playing the entire game.

According to batting coach Mike Hussey, Dhoni bats down the order to add the finishing touch since he doesn't want to risk his troublesome knee by running between the wickets. The legendary keeper-batter has been dealing with a knee injury for the entirety of the IPL, but Dhoni has kept wickets in every match while also making helpful cameos at the end of innings, batting at No. 8.

“I think it's pretty clear that he likes to come in the last few overs, that's his plan. It's been well-documented that his knee has not been 100 percent and he's trying to get through the matches as best as he can throughout the tournament,” Hussey said in a pre-match press conference ahead of CSK’s final league game against Delhi Capitals.

He doesn't want to come in the 10th, 11^th, or 12th over and have to run those quick doubles: Hussey

The World Cup-winning captain has received immense support from the home crowd in Chennai this season. After CSK's defeat to KKR, which was their final home game, Dhoni performed a lap of honor around the MA Chidambaram Stadium with an ice pack tied around his knee. Last week, during the game against DC, Dhoni was seen hobbling and finding it difficult to take singles and doubles.

“So, I think, he doesn't want to come in the 10th, 11^th, or 12th over and have to run those quick doubles all the time, that's going to put pressure on the knee. He's trying to delay coming in as long as possible and having that impact late in the innings. He shows a lot of backing and faith in the likes of (Shivam) Dube, (Ravindra) Jadeja, (Ajinkya) Rahane and (Ambati) Rayudu to do the job before he comes in,” Hussey added.