The MA Chidambaram Stadium wore a festive look ahead of Chennai Super Kings’ IPL 2026 home match in the city. On Sunday, the five-time champions held a special event for their fans, where their former players – the OGs – were under one roof. It was a day that reignited nostalgia as the likes of Matthew Hayden, Michael Hussey, Dwayne Bravo, Muttiah Muralitharan, Murali Vijay, Parthiv Patel, S Badrinath and Suresh Raina donned the yellow jersey again and stepped on the iconic Chepauk.
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MS Dhoni stole the show as expected. The 44-year-old took to the field on Sunday afternoon against a stormy backdrop, much to the delight of fans who had bought tickets for the special event, which will be followed by a concert by Oscar winner AR Rahman.
As she watched Dhoni walk onto the field to start the fun-filled practice session, she saw the female fan break down in tears. Named ‘Roar 26’, CSK organized a special evening to honor its former cricketers as well as World Cup winners from the current side.
While the loudest cheers were reserved for Dhoni, Suresh Raina – one of CSK’s greats – was greeted with a huge roar from the crowd. Sanju Samson, who will don the yellow of CSK in IPL 2026 after moving from Rajasthan Royals, also got a rousing reception.
Dhoni looked to be enjoying himself as he kept wickets for some of his former teammates. He watched Michael Hussey dance down the track and send captain Ruturaj Gaikwad into the stands for part-time off-spin.
Dhoni was also behind the stumps when Samson rocked and hit Muttiah Muralitharan for a six.
As usual, Dhoni and Dwayne Bravo engaged in some light-hearted banter on the field. When Dhoni had the chance to stump Bravo, who was dancing down the track and missed a big shot, he chose not to. Later in the evening, Bravo entertained the Chepauk crowd by singing a song before walking up to Dhoni and sharing a warm hug with his former captain.
DHONI APPRECIATES SAMSON
MS Dhoni with Sanju Samson at Chepauk (Courtesy: @ChennaiIPL/X)
Dhoni then honored India’s T20 World Cup heroes – Shivam Dube and Sanju Samson – by presenting them with special mementos. Ayush Mhatre, who led the Indian Under-19 team to World Cup glory this year, was also felicitated by Dhoni.
Dhoni later joined the CSK OG and current players for the lap of honor and thanked the fans who turned up in large numbers. He was also seen hitting tennis balls into the stands, ensuring fans went home with special memories.
It was the first time that CSK hosted a fan event before the IPL season. The franchise has secured the presence of several former superstars. Despite their commitments with other IPL teams, Bravo (mentor of KKR), Hayden and Parthiv (coaches with Gujarat Titans) attended the event in Chennai.
All eyes were on Dhoni amid speculation that the event, which will feature several CSK greats, could signal the start of his final season as a player. However, there was no sign of a farewell as the 44-year-old pulled on the gloves and enjoyed his time on the pitch.
While Ruturaj Gaikwad will continue to lead CSK, we will see how much Dhoni will be involved this season. There is a school of thought that he could be limited to playing as an Impact Player. However, if indications from training are anything to go by, Dhoni could take up the wicket duties ahead of Samson.
Dhoni hasn’t had the best of seasons with the bat in IPL 2025, managing 196 runs at a strike rate of 135.17 in 14 matches. It has been a tough campaign for the side as CSK finished at the bottom of the points table for the first time in IPL history after Dhoni took over the captaincy following Ruturaj’s mid-season injury.
However, Dhoni has been working hard to prepare for IPL 2026, which starts on March 28. After starting preparations in Ranchi back in February, he joined the CSK camp in Chennai in the first week of March and has been training intensively since then.
CSK will begin their campaign against Rajasthan Royals in Guwahati on Monday, March 30. They will play their first home game against Punjab Kings on Friday, April 3.
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Issued by:
Akshay Ramesh
Published on:
March 22, 2026 7:37 PM IST
