Dhoni "Not My Friend, Elder Brother...": Indian Cricket Star On Ex-Captain

MS Dhoni, despite having retired from international cricket in 2020, continues to inspire generations of cricketers. Dhoni last played in the IPL 2024 and speculation continues to be there over his future. One things that his co-players vouch for Dhoni is his immaculate game sense. From behind the stumps, Dhoni has been known to orchestrate his troops to some great results. 

Left-arm pacer Khaleel Ahmed is one of the admirers of Dhoni. Khaleel, who has played 11 ODIs and 18 T20Is, was recently interviewed by former India opener Aakash Chopra. He showed Khaleel a photo of MS Dhoni giving him a bouquet of flowers and asked him the story behind it. 

"This photo was taken in New Zealand. We were going to the practice ground from the main ground. Mahi bhai was given flowers by his friends. I was walking with him. He passed me the flowers. Mahi bhai is not my friend, not my elder brother, he is my guru," Khaleel said on Chopra's YouTube channel.

"Since my childhood, I wanted to become the bowler who took the first over from India since I had watched Zaheer Khan growing up. In the Asia Cup, Mahi bhai, asked me to bowl the first over. I ran so hard, away from the huddle thinking that if I give it time he might change his mind. I think the most important player of a team gets to bowl the first.

Meanwhile, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) CEO Kasi Viswanath has denied the reports that the franchise asked the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for a reintroduction of a now-scrapped rule to rope in MS Dhoni for a lower price. Earlier in IPL, an international player after five years of his retirement would be named in the 'uncapped' category.

However, this rule was abolished after IPL 2021. Several reports stated that CSK want that rule to back as it would help them retain Dhoni as an 'uncapped' player, which means at a price as low as Rs 4 crore. The franchise had retained Dhoni for a price of 12 crore in 2022. However, CSK CEO Viswanath has refuted the rumours that the franchise made any such request.