Former Indian all-rounder, Suresh Raina recalled witnessing the batting prowess of MS Dhoni for the first time, saying the wicket-keeper batter used to hit sixes touching the sky from the word go for the East Zone during a 2004 match against Central Zone. Over the years, the duo formed a partnership at Chennai Super Kings which is now considered part of the cricketing legend.
While sharing his first-hand experience of witnessing Dhoni’s big hitting, during a chat on JioCinema, Suresh Raina said: “We were hearing a lot about a player with long hair from Jharkhand known for hitting it out of the park consistently. This one day, we all were hanging around while Dhoni bhai quietly was eating his roti and butter chicken in a corner.”
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He further added, “Gyanu bhai saw him and said, ‘I really don’t think he’s going to do us any damage. He’s enjoying his food; let him do that’. From the word go, he hit gagan chumbhi (touching the sky) sixes, and Gyanu bhai had to eat his words.”
Suresh Raina later went on to see Dhoni’s finishing skills from close quarters while playing alongside him for India and CSK. The southpaw shared another instance during the 2010 IPL match between CSK and Kings XI Punjab. In a high-scoring match, Dhoni scored 54* to help CSK to get over the line with 6 wickets in hand. The Chennai-based franchise went on to win the IPL in 2010.
Recalling the game, Suresh Raina said, “He clubbed a big one over long-on, and then punched his helmet. I have never seen him do this in any match or any situation. Everyone knew him as Captain Cool, but the energy he showed was because of the match situation.”
Raina also gave a sneak peek into Dhoni’s love for automobiles and video games, and how his love for two-wheelers got extended to cars.
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Explaining the same, Suresh Raina said, “We all know how many bikes he has and how he personally fine-tunes them, but he has extended this passion for vintage cars. He has become a collector. Whenever we would ask him to go for dinner, he would inevitably play a game and delay our meals by 10-15 mins because he was intensely involved in the game.”
