During the 2024 IPL, the Royal Challengers Bengaluru were in a really bad position as they stood at the bottom of the points for the first half of the tournament. This prompted the fans and cricket pundits to calculate if RCB would even be able to make it to the playoffs or not. They concluded that RCB can only make it to the playoffs if they win all their remaining matches and defeat CSK by 18 runs. RCB defied all the odds and won all of their remaining matches, and in the last over of their match against CSK, Yash Dayal defended 18 runs against MS Dhoni.
The victory was a moment of immense celebration for both the RCB fans and the players. The players celebrated the win aggressively by punching the air, running around the field and embracing each other.
As is customary, MS Dhoni led the CSK squad onto the boundary line to perform the post-match handshakes. However, the RCB players were heavily immersed in wild on-field celebrations. After waiting for a prolonged period while the opposition celebrated, Dhoni decided not to wait any longer. Television cameras captured him turning around, walking past the handshake line, and heading straight into the tunnel.
Former Indian off-spinner Harbhajan Singh brought the incident back into the public eye months later during an unfiltered interview on the Sports Yaari podcast. "RCB was celebrating and CSK had lined up to shake hands... By the time Team RCB finished their celebration, Dhoni went inside and he punched a screen outside the dressing room. I was watching from above... That day he felt that his dream of winning this match and then retiring with the trophy got shattered”, the cricketer commented.
CSK physiotherapist dismisses rumours of MS Dhoni punching screen in dressing room
Chennai Super Kings (CSK) head physiotherapist Tommy Simsek forcefully dismissed all rumours of MS Dhoni punching a television screen, labelling the viral dressing room story as a complete fabrication. Replying directly to a social media report detailing the alleged outburst, Simsek clarified that Dhoni maintained his composure and did not destroy any property following CSK's intense playoff elimination against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB). Simsek publicly called out the claims via an Instagram comment, writing, "This is absolute Rubbish! MSD did not break anything and I have never seen him aggressive after any match. Fake news!"
Simsek, who has spent over a decade observing Dhoni's behavior under extreme duress, argued that while Dhoni was deeply disappointed about the elimination, physical vandalism or violent outbursts are entirely uncharacteristic of how he conducts himself in professional spaces. While television cameras did capture Dhoni walking back into the dressing room early without shaking hands with the main RCB playing XI, the franchise has firmly established that no property damage or physical aggression occurred behind closed doors.
