“We forgot the situation of the game” - R Ashwin reveals stunning tale on MS Dhoni’s reception in CSK vs MI IPL 2025 match
Chennai Super Kings (CSK) spinner Ravichandran Ashwin recalled being mesmerized by the Chepauk crowd's reaction to MS Dhoni's entrance during the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL) clash against the Mumbai Indians (MI) recently. The iconic wicket-keeper walked out to bat in the penultimate over following Ravindra Jadeja's run out, leading to an overwhelming response by the home crowd.
CSK were close to polishing off the run chase but were struggling to get over the line with the constant fall of wickets towards the end. Although the Yellow Army were favorites, MI made their presence felt in the game by putting pressure on the opposition.
Dhoni played out two dot balls off Naman Dhir to send the match into the final over. The veteran did not get the strike back as Rachin Ravindra sealed the four-wicket win with a six off Mitchell Santner's bowling.
Returning to the CSK camp after a decade, it marked the first time that Ashwin witnessed the iconic reaction from the dressing room.
"When MS Dhoni came out to bat in Chennai, there was so much noise and chaos, that we forgot the situation of the game only. Obviously, MS Dhoni has earned the love. It was for the first time I was seeing that reception from the CSK dressing room, I always saw it from the outside," Ashwin said on his YouTube channel.
The win over MI marked MS Dhoni's return to competitive cricket since the 2024 IPL season. There were speculations surrounding his future, but it was put to rest after he was retained as an uncapped player by CSK during the off-season.
"Everyone forgot that a match was on the line" - R Ashwin on MS Dhoni superseding the game situation
As mentioned above, the match was not quite done and dusted when MS Dhoni walked out to bat. The MI spinners consistently applied pressure to stay in the hunt, almost getting to the CSK's lower-order. Luckily, CSK had a well-settled Rachin Ravindra at the other end, who held one end and played to the situation.
"I was padded up, I was the next batter. I went inside and asked Ruturaj how is the wicket and all that because we still needed 4 runs, but everyone forgot that a match was on the line," Ashwin recalled.
While Dhoni could not finish off the contest, he had his moment in the first innings when he executed a flawless stumping to dismiss opposition skipper Suryakumar Yadav. It turned out to be a huge moment in the game as MI struggled for momentum after that.