‘Dhoni by no means complained about his knee to anyone’
MS Dhoni did not take into account lacking a single IPL recreation this season, though it meant enjoying with a closely strapped left knee in a forged. The former India captain, who led Chennai Super Kings to a fifth IPL crown, has since undergone surgical procedure in Mumbai earlier this month and is “comfortable, happy and recovering.”
“We never asked him things like ‘do you want to play or do you want to sit out.’ If he can’t, he would’ve told us straightaway,” CSK CEO Kasi Viswanathan advised ESPNcricinfo. “We knew it was a struggle for him to play, but his commitment to the team, his leadership and how the team benefits everyone knows. From that perspective, you have to appreciate him.
“Till the ultimate, he by no means complained about his knee to anyone. Though everybody knew, and you’d’ve seen him struggling whereas working, he by no means complained even as soon as. After the ultimate, he stated, ‘okay, I’ll have a surgical procedure.’ He’s completed his surgical procedure, he is fairly pleased, he is recovering.”
At the post-final presentation, Dhoni agreed retiring after winning the title would be the “finest time”, but has vowed to return for “a minimum of” one more season if his body allows. This will be a “reward” to his fans even if it means putting in “powerful” yards for another nine months. That stance remains intact, with Dhoni set to begin his rehab soon after three weeks of post-surgery rest.
“Actually, he advised us instantly after the ultimate is over he’ll fly to Mumbai, have surgical procedure and return to Ranchi for rehab,” Viswanathan said. “In Mumbai, after Ruturaj’s marriage ceremony [on June 4], I visited him. It was a courtesy name. He’s fairly snug. He stated he’ll relaxation for 3 weeks after which begin his rehab. And like he stated, he isn’t going to play till January-February. We needn’t remind him about all that.
“He knows what to do, how to go about it, so we aren’t going to ask him ‘what are you going to do, how’ etc. He will inform us on his own. Whatever he’s doing, he’ll call first and inform only Mr N Srinivasan, not anyone else. Factually, he’ll be straightforward with him. From him, we’ll get the information that this is what he’s doing. It’s been this way since 2008. That’s how it will continue.”
Viswanathan additionally brushed apart the chatter of any friction between Ravindra Jadeja and Dhoni. Last yr, there have been murmurs that every one was not effectively between the 2 after Jadeja was removed as captain mid-season. Rumuors intensified when Jadeja left the camp with an damage.
This season, Jadeja can also be believed to have been irked by chants of “we want Dhoni!” each time he walked in to bat. Then there have been visuals of Jadeja and Dhoni in an animated chat after CSK’s conflict in Delhi, the place Jadeja completed with figures of 0 for 50 off 4 overs. Soon after, Viswanathan himself was seen having a protracted dialogue with Jadeja. Then there have been some cryptic tweets on “karma” and a few simple ones, like appreciation from sponsors however not followers.
“As far as Jadeja is concerned, he bowled superbly,” Viswanathan stated. “While batting, our line-up of Ruturaj, Conway, Moeen, Rahane, with the results, whenever he [Jadeja] went in to bat, he had 5-10 balls left. In such situations, it can or can’t click sometimes. But the thing is he also knew Dhoni was to come in next, and he himself would get just 2-3 balls sometimes. In such situations whenever he went in, the crowd used to welcome Dhoni. In a way, he may have felt hurt. Any player for that matter may have had that pressure. But he didn’t complain about it even though he put out a tweet.
“It’s all half and parcel of the sport. After the final recreation, folks noticed movies on-line and assumed I’m pacifying Jadeja, nevertheless it wasn’t like that. I used to be speaking to him in regards to the match, what he did. We did not have every other dialogue. Everyone is aware of in a staff surroundings, what occurs within the dressing room, nobody is aware about it outdoors. We have no downside. He all the time had excessive respect for Dhoni. After the ultimate additionally, he stated, ‘I dedicate this knock to Dhoni.’ That is the form of respect he has for MS.”
What were Dhoni’s first words to him after the final was won?
“He stated, ‘look, the fifth title has been delivered.’ It’s a giant reduction,” Viswanathan said. “He praised Jadeja for the hassle and confidence he confirmed. It [Ahmedabad] was like a house floor for him [Jadeja]. It was very satisfying. Everyone is aware of how Dhoni has introduced up Jadeja from 2012 at CSK. He has the satisfaction of seeing a home-grown boy ship the title for CSK.”
This interview first appeared on ESPNcricinfo Tamil on June 20
Shashank Kishore is a senior sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo