Former Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh shared a conversation between him and MS Dhoni in a friend’s wedding where Harbhajan asked about the secret behind Dhoni’s incredible longevity in the Indian Premier League (IPL). He even asked about how Dhoni maintains his fitness and handle the demands of tournaments even at the age of 43.
“I just met him recently at one of our friend’s daughter’s weddings. He looked very fit, solid. I asked him, ‘What you are doing at this age, isn’t it tough?’ He said, ‘Yes, it’s difficult, but this is the only thing I like doing. I find joy in it. I want to do it, go out and play.’ As long as the hunger is there, you will be able to do it. It’s hard without playing any cricket (throughout the year). He is showing how it’s done. He must be doing something better than the others. He is not just surviving, he is dominating all the bowlers,” Harbhajan told ESPNcricinfo.
“The practice that he is doing for one-two months The more balls you play, you get that timing, flow and sixes going. He bats 2-3 hours every day in Chennai. He is the first one to come to the ground and the last one to leave, even at this age. That’s the difference,” he added.
All the speculations around Dhoni’s future were put to rest when CSK retained him again for the IPL 2025 season. Before the 2024 IPL season Dhoni went through a knee surgery but that didn’t stop him at all and he played all the 14 matches for CSK and scored 161 runs in 11 innings with an outstanding strike rate of 220.54.
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Even though experts and supporters counseled him to bat higher in the order, Dhoni stuck by his strategy, opting to play the blitz cameos at the backend of the innings instead of playing the role of an extended stay batter.
