"If MS Dhoni plays from one side, he cannot be the mentor of the other" - Aakash Chopra on the 'peculiar situation' for Super Kings in CSA T20 League 2023

Aakash Chopra has pointed out that it is a peculiar situation that MS Dhoni will not be allowed to be the mentor of the Johannesburg Super Kings while Stephen Fleming can be their head coach.

The Chennai Super Kings (CSK) franchise bought the Johannesburg side in the Cricket South Africa (CSA) T20 league to be played in 2023. While Fleming has been named as the coach of the franchise, the Board of Cricket for Cricket in India (BCCI) has ruled out the possibility of MS Dhoni mentoring the Super Kings' South African side.

Chopra had the following about the development in a video shared on his YouTube channel:

"It is a very interesting story that MS Dhoni cannot be a mentor of Chennai's South Africa franchise. It's a peculiar situation that Stephen Fleming can coach both teams but if MS Dhoni plays from one side, he cannot be the mentor of the other. I think he can be the mentor of both teams."

Chopra shared the reasons behind the BCCI's call. The former Indian batter explained:

"There is a simple rule which needs to be followed, if you want to associate yourself as an Indian player, you will have to snap all your ties with the BCCI. You have taken retirement from international cricket, so there is no issue there, but you will also have to bid goodbye to playing in the IPL."

Dhoni has made it clear that he will be seen in CSK colors as a player in IPL 2023. The talismanic skipper wants to play matches in front of his home crowd and other venues across India before calling it quits from the prestigious league.

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"That's a beautiful story" - Aakash Chopra on the expansion of the IPL franchises

Indian franchises are buying teams across the world

Chopra believes Indian franchises acquiring teams across the world is a wonderful story. He elaborated:

"The way the IPL teams are expanding, that's a beautiful story. In the CSA league, there are six teams and all have Indian owners. Lucknow Super Giants, Chennai Super Kings, Mumbai Indians, Rajasthan Royals, Delhi Capitals and Sunrisers Hyderabad - all have teams there."

Chopra also pointed out the implications of IPL franchises buying all six teams in the CSA league. The reputed commentator observed:

"Even though the formula is four overseas players and seven local players but all the stakeholders of the league are Indians. You are expecting a lot of revenue to come from India. So India is actually now going to call the shots in the CSA league as well."

Chopra added that the UAE ILT20 league also has multiple Indian owners. The 44-year-old concluded by predicting that it might not be long before T20 teams worldwide are owned by the IPL franchises.