The bromance between Suresh Raina and MS Dhoni isn’t any secret. The partnerships two have solid whereas carrying the Blues or Yellows is now a part of cricketing folklore. Such was the influence of the Raina-Dhoni alliance that Chennai Super Kings followers fondly referred to as Raina ‘Chinna Thala’ after Dhoni turned their ‘Thala’.
On a brand new episode of ‘My Time with Dhoni’, obtainable completely on JioCinema, Raina recalled the second he first witnessed Dhoni and his penchant for big-hitting. In 2004, Raina represented Central Zone, and first-hand acquired a style of Dhoni’s prowess, who was enjoying for the East Zone.
“We were hearing a lot about a player with long hair from Jharkhand known for hitting it out of the park consistently,” recalled Raina.
“This one day, we all were hanging around while Dhoni bhai quietly was eating his roti and butter chicken in a corner. 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’,” Raina remembered.
When the motion started, Dhoni got here out to bat, and Central Zone skipper Mohammed Kaif put an attacking discipline with slips and a gully. “From the word go, he hit gagan chumbhi (touching the sky) sixes, and Gyanu bhai had to eat his words,” stated Raina, who then witnessed MSD’s hard-hitting and ending abilities from shut quarters whereas enjoying for India and CSK. (IPL 2023: RCB’s Glenn Maxwell Drops A Bombshell, Says He Is Still Not Fully Fit)
But essentially the most memorable gagan chumbhi six that Raina recalled Dhoni hitting was in 2010 at Dharamshala in a match towards Kings XI Punjab. “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 remembered. Dhoni led CSK in a difficult, high-scoring chase in that match that took them to the semifinals, finally the last word prize too.
Giving a peek into his off-field ardour, Raina reveals Dhoni’s ardour for two-wheelers has been prolonged to four-wheelers too. (IPL 2023: Another Blow To KKR, Key Pacer Ruled Out Due To Injury After Captain Shreyas Iyer)
“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,” Raina revealed. Mr. IPL additionally divulged his skipper’s love for gaming.
“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,” Raina stated.
