India, July 15 -- Stephen Fleming's departure has left Chennai Super Kings facing the most consequential coaching decision in their history, and Ravichandran Ashwin believes MS Dhoni would be the franchise's ideal choice to lead the next chapter.

CSK announced on Tuesday that they had mutually parted ways with Fleming, ending a remarkable association that began when the former New Zealand captain joined the franchise as a player in the inaugural IPL season in 2008. He became head coach a year later and spent the next 17 seasons helping build one of the competition's most successful and stable teams.

Ashwin, who experienced the Fleming-Dhoni partnership closely during his time at CSK, believes the franchise had reached a stage where it n...