Picture Credit: X/IPL
Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain MS Dhoni and Mumbai Indians (MI) pacer Deepak Chahar shared a playful moment with each other before the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 game between the two teams at the iconic Wankhede Stadium on April 20. CSK won their second game of the tournament after beating Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) by five wickets on April 14 and the victory gave relief to CSK supporters as their side came out victorious after losing five games in a row. On the other side, MI have also regained their form after winning their last two games after vanquishing Delhi Capitals (DC) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH).
Prior to the marquee clash, Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya reunited with their former captain Dhoni but the most amazing meeting happened between Chahar and the 43-year-old veteran. In a viral video surfacing on social media, Chahar can be seen bantering with Dhoni, following which the CSK skipper chases the 32-year-old with a bat. Posting the heartwarming meeting of both players, CSK wrote on X, “Making merry with Namma Cherry! #MIvCSK #WhistlePodu.” Dhoni and Chahar were teammates in Rising Pune Supergiant (2016 and 2017) and CSK (2018-2024) in IPL for eight years.
Dhoni will look to lead CSK from the front
Dhoni looked extraordinary as captain in CSK's previous outing against LSG. While keeping the stumps, he performed two dismissals whereas holding the bat, he took Lucknow’s bowling unit to the cleaners and played a match-concluding knock of an unbeaten 26 off 11. His innings also got him the player of the match (POTM) award.
Against MI, he will be expected to do wonders with his bat and gloves. His records have been amazing against MI, hoarding 768 runs in 37 innings at a strike rate of 131.28. Talking about his batting numbers in the tournament so far, he has accumulated 130 runs in four innings of seven contests at a strike rate of 158.54.
