On April 3, MS Dhoni’s Chennai Super Kings (CSK) secured a victory against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in the sixth match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. CSK won the game by 12 runs, with an impressive score of 217/7, thanks to openers Ruturaj Gaikwad and Devon Conway’s quickfire partnership of 110 runs for the first wicket. LSG, in response, could only manage 205/7, with Moeen Ali taking 4/26 to restrict the opposition.
After the game, CSK skipper MS Dhoni had a heartwarming moment with the daughter of Krishnappa Gowtham, LSG’s bowling all-rounder. CSK’s official social media handles shared pictures of the encounter, which quickly went viral. In one of the photos, Dhoni is seen high-fiving Gowtham’s daughter, while in another, he poses with Gowtham and his family. The post was captioned “A Cute #Yellovely reunion ????????.”
The sweet moment between Dhoni and Gowtham’s daughter showed the lighter side of the competitive sport, with players often sharing camaraderie off the field. Dhoni, who is known for his calm and composed demeanour, has won hearts with his gestures in the past too.
Krishnappa Gowtham, who is 34 years old, had been a member of Chennai Super Kings (CSK) during IPL 2021. He was bought by the franchise for a substantial sum of ₹9.25 crore during the auction. On Monday, playing for Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) against his former team, Gowtham bowled one over and conceded 20 runs without taking a wicket. He also batted for LSG, scoring an unbeaten 17 off 11 balls.
MS Dhoni Expresses Surprise Over Wicket as CSK Secures Impressive Victory
After Chennai Super Kings’ impressive win against Lucknow Super Giants, MS Dhoni expressed his surprise at how well the wicket at Chepauk played. Speaking about the match, the CSK captain said, “It was a terrific high-scoring game. All of us were thinking how the wicket would be. It was the perfect first game that could happen. I thought it would be much slower. But it was a wicket where you could score runs. I was quite surprised with the wicket. But we’ll have to see if we can produce a wicket like this game after game.”
Despite the team’s victory, the 41-year-old highlighted the need for the fast bowlers to improve their performance, stating, “Fast bowling we need to slightly improve. Need to bowl according to the conditions. What is important is to keep an eye as to what the opposition bowlers are doing.”
MS Dhoni also issued a warning to his bowlers regarding the high number of wides and no-balls they bowled. He humorously stated, “One more thing is they’ll have to bowl no no-balls or extra wides. Or they’ll have to play under a new captain. It will be my second warning and then I’ll be off.” In the match, Chennai Super Kings had bowled 13 wides and three no-balls.