Top 5 Angry Moments of MS Dhoni
MS Dhoni has been often referred to as the ‘Captain Cool’ of the Indian team, for his calm and composed on-field and dressing room behaviour. His ability to stay focused even in high-pressure situations and remain unfazed speaks volumes of his character. However, like any human being, he too has had had moments in the IPL, where he was seen losing his calmness on different instances, including when he argued with the match umpires, got upset with his teammates, and was frustrated with a wrong call decision during one of the matches.
Here we have listed the top five notable and rare moments that have been etched in the history of IPL so far, where the audiences saw their beloved MS Dhoni losing his cool and publicly expressing his displeasure on field.
1. CSK vs RCB (2023) – During this match between two opposing rivals, Dhoni got agitated on his fellow teammate Moeen Ali for his poor show as a fielder. Dhoni is known to be extremely quick with his fielding and wicket-keeping skills and expects the same level of dedication from his players too.
2. CSK vs SRH (2022) – Dhoni also did not hold back his emotions between a 2022 IPL game between CSK and SRH. Thala, as he is popularly called, lost his calm when in the final over CSK bowler Mukesh Chowdhary’s delivery to Nicholas Pooran was improper and resulted in a ‘wide’ signal by the umpire. Dhoni was furious with the fielders on the off-side and expressed his bowler to be cautious of the off-stump deliveries.
3. CSK vs MI (2021) – In this clash between two winning teams, MI’s Saurabh Tiwary batted an unconventional shot making it a viable catch out delivery. However, the mix-up and collision between Dwayne Bravo and Dhoni as fielders to catch the ball made him clearly unhappy with this missed chance.
4. CSK vs RR (2019) – During this exciting encounter, Dhoni lost his cool and charged onto the field as he got involved in a heated argument with the on-field umpires for a wrong no-ball call. He was furious when the on-field umpires signalled a no-ball but then changed their call. Dhoni stormed onto the field and openly spoke with the umpires, asking them to review the decision. RR bowler Ben Stokes’s initial delivery was credited as a no-ball but later deemed as a fair one. The frustration on Dhoni’s face, post the reversal of the decision was obvious. He was subsequently fined 50% of his match fees for breaching the IPL Code of Conduct.
5. CSK vs Kings XI Punjab (2019) – Dhoni was angry with his team’s fast bowler Deepak Chahar, for bowling poorly and conceding too many runs in his over. The visibly upset captain, otherwise known to never panic or take rash decisions, lost his temper when Chahar’s errors while bowling his fourth over helped the opposition concede too many runs, make him aware of his careless action.
While Dhoni may have always appeared to be unshakeable on the exterior, he has been deeply invested in the team’s performance since the inception in 2008. Dhoni’s connection with CSK, is one of the most iconic stories in the league’s history. His accurate leadership, stable composure, and the ability to deliver in tense moments have made him indispensable for the franchise.
Even in IPL 2024, despite stepping down as captain, Dhoni played a crucial role for CSK. Under Dhoni’s legit captaincy, CSK secured a joint-record five IPL titles, greatly amplifying their dominance in the tournament.
By: Tulika Agarwal
