Ahead of IPL 2025, former India captain MS Dhoni has opened up on his fitness level. However, he will play his 18th IPL season in the upcoming edition, having been retained by the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) as an uncapped player for ₹4 crore as well. Following the 2023 season, Dhoni underwent treatment for a knee injury that had troubled him throughout the season and returned to full fitness in the 2024 campaign. He had a good 2024 season with the bat, averaging almost 54 at a strike rate of 220.54 in 14 outings as well.

Talking about his fitness on the Eurogrip Tyres YouTube channel, Dhoni said (as quoted by News18): “I am not fit as I used to be, lot of efforts now needs to be there on what you are eating and I am doing very specific thing to be fit for cricket. We are not fast bowlers so our requirements are not that intense. What really helps me is playing a lot of sports in between eating and going to the gym. So whenever I get time I like to play a lot of different sports, may be tennis, badminton, football, that keeps me engaged. That’s the best way of being in touch with fitness.”

ALSO READ: Hardik Pandya shares happiness after winning back the love of fans

MS Dhoni also believes recognizing the ‘controllable’ is the most important part of achieving success in cricket as well. Similar to the IPL, Dhoni is India’s most successful captain across formats with 178 wins in 332 matches.

“You first need to differentiate what is controllable. If you start complicating stuffs then it becomes very difficult to understand that. Like in cricket, people talk about what is cricket and then you come up with different explanations. One of the best way to play cricket for a batsman is you watch the ball and you react to whatever is bowled at you,” MS Dhoni said again. “For me controllable in cricket is I have to practice well, I have to eat well, I have to be fit, how much sleep I had before the game, how much hydration I had, how much I had tried to get information about the opposition.”