New Delhi, May 19 (IANS): Chennai Super Kings (CSK) stalwart M.S. Dhoni landed in Ranchi on Sunday after losing the Indian Premier League (IPL) virtual knockout against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru to end their campaign in the tournament.

Chasing 219, CSK faltered in the middle overs after recovering from the sloppy start. Rachin Ravindra's 61-run and Ravindra Jadeja's unbeaten 42 failed to guide the defending champion over the line.

Despite finishing the campaign with 14 points same as RCB in the league stage, CSK failed to seal the berth due to the latter's superior net run rate.

With CSK ending their campaign in the IPL, fans and experts speculated that it could be Dhoni's final season for the franchise, but the veteran has kept his cards close to heart and headed back home after the match.

In a video that has gone viral on social media, Dhoni can be seen getting into his car outside the Ranchi airport on Sunday afternoon.

Coming at No.8, Dhoni played a knock of 25 runs off 13 balls with three fours and a six before Yash Dayal sent him back to the pavilion, crushing CSK's hopes of progressing to the playoffs.

In the IPL 2024 season, Dhoni accumulated 161 runs at a strike rate of 220.54 while batting deep down the order for Chennai. He also struck 14 fours and 13 sixes in the tournament.

With nothing concrete from the franchise and the legend himself, fans remain hopeful of Dhoni's return for the next IPL season.