Captaincy Pressure Burdened Jadeja: Dhoni

PUNE: The pressure and demands that come with captaincy affected Ravindra Jadeja's preparation and performance, says Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who had encouraged the all-rounder to take responsibility as a skipper rather than "spoon-feeding" him after the initial two-match transition period.

Jadeja had been appointed CSK skipper after Dhoni decided to step aside just before the tournament began last month.

But the all-rounder buckled under pressure and eventually gave up the job, forcing the franchise to fall back on their most trusted lieutenant.

Under Jadeja, CSK lost six out of their eight matches. India's most dependable all-format all-rounder's batting, bowling and fielding also took a hit.

Back at the helm of affairs, Dhoni, who has led CSK to four titles, produced instant result as CSK registered a 13-run win over Sunrisers Hyderabad to keep themselves afloat in the tournament on Sunday.

"I think Jadeja knew last season he'd be captaining this year. For the first two games, I oversaw his work and let him be later. After that, I insisted he'd take his own decisions and responsibility for them," Dhoni said at the post-match presentation ceremony.

"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."

Dhoni said Jadeja taking over the mantle of the side was a gradual transition, which he wanted.

"He knew and got enough time to prepare, what is important is you want him to lead the side and I wanted that transition to happen. At the end of the season, you don't want him to feel as the captaincy was done by someone else and I'm just going for toss.