Jadeja has always had high respect for Dhoni: CSK CEO

MS Dhoni played the entire IPL 2023 with a brace on his left knee but Chennai Super Kings CEO Kasi Viswanathan said not once the 41-year-old complained about it or even considered missing a game. After leading CSK to their fifth IPL title, Dhoni underwent a successful knee surgery in Mumbai and is now "comfortable, happy and recovering."

"We never asked him things like 'do you want to play or do you want to sit out.' If he can't, he would've told us straightaway. We knew it was a struggle for him to play, but his commitment to the team, his leadership and how the team benefits everyone knows. From that perspective, you have to appreciate him,” Viswanathan told ESPNcricinfo.

"Till the final, he never complained about his knee to anybody. Though everyone knew, and you would've seen him struggling while running, he never complained even once. After the final, he said, 'okay, I'll have a surgery.' He's finished his surgery, he's quite happy, he's recovering."

The wicketkeeper-batter was brilliant behind the stumps but largely batted at No. 8 throughout the season. He restricted his batting to the last few overs so that he won’t have to run a lot between the wickets. There were also some reports about him retiring after this season but Dhoni said he would return for one more year, depending on how his body reacts.

"Actually, he told us immediately after the final is over he'll fly to Mumbai, have surgery and go back to Ranchi for rehab. In Mumbai, after Ruturaj's wedding (on June 4), I visited him. It was a courtesy call. He's quite comfortable. He said he'll rest for three weeks and then start his rehab. And like he said, he's not going to play until January-February. We don't need to remind him about all that,” said Viswanathan.  

"He knows what to do, how to go about it, so we aren't going to ask him 'what are you going to do, how' etc. He will inform us on his own. Whatever he's doing, he'll call first and inform only Mr N Srinivasan, not anyone else. Factually, he'll be straightforward with him. From him, we'll get the information that this is what he's doing. It's been this way since 2008. That's how it will continue."

Viswanathan also spoke about Ravindra Jadeja's relationship with Dhoni. We all what happened last year, and on top of that, the spin-bowling all-rounder was also not too pleased with "we want Dhoni!" chants whenever he walked out to bat this season.

"As far as Jadeja is concerned, he bowled superbly. While batting, our line-up of Ruturaj, Conway, Moeen, Rahane, with the results, whenever he (Jadeja) went in to bat, he had 5-10 balls left. In such situations, it can or can't click sometimes. But the thing is he also knew Dhoni was to come in next, and he himself would get just 2-3 balls sometimes. In such situations whenever he went in, the crowd used to welcome Dhoni. In a way, he may have felt hurt. Any player for that matter may have had that pressure. But he didn't complain about it even though he put out a tweet.

"It's all part and parcel of the game. After the last game, people saw videos online and assumed I'm pacifying Jadeja, but it wasn't like that. I was talking to him about the match, what he did. We didn't have any other discussion. Everyone knows in a team environment, what happens in the dressing room, no one is privy to it outside. We don't have any problem. He always had high respect for Dhoni. After the final also, he said, 'I dedicate this knock to Dhoni.' That is the kind of respect he has for MS."

When asked what MSD said after the triumph, Viswanathan said: “He said, 'look, the fifth title has been delivered.' It's a big relief. He praised Jadeja for the effort and confidence he showed. It (Ahmedabad) was like a home ground for him (Jadeja). It was very satisfying. Everyone knows how Dhoni has brought up Jadeja from 2012 at CSK. He has the satisfaction of seeing a home-grown boy deliver the title for CSK."