Indian legendary captain reveals what helped him to take the plunge with opposition players

Chennai is set to square off with Bangalore for the inaugural match of the Indian T20 League 2024 which is scheduled to be played at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Friday, March 22. Ahead of the scintillating encounter, the defending champions’ Chennai franchise captain, Mahendra Singh Dhoni said that the uniting of cricketers from all across the globe in a unified team makes the Indian franchise league an exciting tournament. He also described how it provided him with the opportunity to know about other overseas players. 

In a recent video circulating in the media, Dhoni spoke regarding the Chennai team of 2008 i.e. the inaugural season of the Indian T20 League, that had likes of Aussie legend Matthew Hayden, Mike Hussey and Sri Lanka spin great Muttiah Muralitharan and many more prominent cricketing figures. 

"The Chennai team that played in 2008 was a well-balanced team and had a lot of all-rounders. The team had a vast pool of experienced players such as Matthew Hayden, Mike Hussey, Muttiah Muralitharan, Makhaya Ntini, and Jacob Oram. To get them all together in one dressing room, to get to know each other was a challenge," Dhoni said.

"I always believed that when you're leading a team, it is important to make sure you understand each other. Once you know the individual, you know his strength, his weaknesses, it becomes easier as a team to move in the right direction," he expressed.

The legendary India skipper, MS Dhoni led Chennai to a record five Indian T20 League titles in 2010, 2011, 2018, 2021 and 2023.

Apart from this, ‘Thala’ as he is lovingly called by Indian fans, led the ‘Yellow Army’ to two Champions League T20 trophies in the years 2010 and 2014 respectively. 

"IPL gave me an opportunity to understand a lot of foreign players. I wasn't somebody who talked a lot to the opposition players but the Indian T20 League provided an opportunity to learn about other players, to know what they think about T20 cricket, and to know their culture. All of that made the Indian T20 League very interesting," he stated.