Former Chennai Super Kings (CSK) batter Ambati Rayudu said that the phenomenal love that MS Dhoni gets in the IPL from fans, especially at Chepauk, doesn’t serve the game well as well. he also explained that all players in the team give a lot of hard work, yet sometimes find themselves in a strange situation where their dismissal is being cheered by their own fans because MS Dhoni will come next to bat.
Speaking to ESPNcricinfo, Rayudu explained: “It is quite daunting if you’re a newcomer. It’s quite loud. The support is phenomenal. But, as you go on and play, then you realize they are MS Dhoni fans before they are CSK fans. It is quite evident, and rightly so, because that’s the way the team has been set up and built over the years. He’s rightly named Thala [leader] and he has been calling the shots in CSK, and it’s come to a stage where people are madly in awe and in love of what he’s done for CSK.”
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“It’s been happening for quite a few years now… but sometimes when you, as an individual, are going out to bat they are shouting from the crowd to… literally asking you to get out. Or they are anticipating or expecting you to get out. So it is quite strange, and I don’t think it actually serves the game well to be very honest. All the [other] players are giving their best for the team as well,” the 39-year-old former India batter added.
However, Rayudu also opined that the CSK may have a tough time maintaining their popularity in the IPL once Dhoni stops playing. he also stated that CSK have not built up another player who can connect with the fans like him as well.
“It will be quite challenging. Not only for the players or Chennai, but definitely for the franchise itself, because for them to [attract] crowds like that, especially even on weekdays – the stands are full, the engagement is amazing; there is no cricketer close to him, to be honest. They have not built up any other guy in the franchise to pull the crowds, because it has always revolved around MS Dhoni,” Ambati Rayudu concluded.
