Mahendra Singh Dhoni “will be retained” by Chennai Super Kings in the 2021 IPL auctions irrespective of whether he plays for India again or not, asserted former BCCI president N Srinivasan.

The lack of a BCCI central contract for the two-time former World Cup-winning captain has sparked fresh rumours of his retirement in the last few days but Srinivasan, who is the vice-president and managing director of Indian Cements, owners of CSK, made it clear that Dhoni will continue to play for his franchise.

“People keep saying when will he… how long will he play, etc. He will play. I can assure you. He will play this year. Next year he will go the auction; he will be retained. So there is no doubt in anybody’s mind,” Srinivasan said at an India Cements event.

The 38-year-old was on Thursday dropped from the BCCI’s list of centrally contracted players, raising fresh doubts on the future of the former India captain who has not played since the World Cup semifinal loss to New Zealand in July last year.

Dhoni’s contract not being renewed was not exactly a surprise as he has not played a competitive game since that World Cup semifinal on July 9. He has been on an sabbatical and has refused to divulge his future plans.