Fit-again Mukesh Choudhary is back, playing faster and smarter after lessons from Dhoni

Mukesh Choudhary did not have much bowling in Palam. In the Ranji Trophy Elite match earlier this week, Services spent 80 overs at the crease in their first innings, showing mettle without ever moving the scoreboard. Maharashtra needed a breakthrough and as the afternoon wore on, Mukesh felt the new ball could provide one.

Sitting in the cover, he called out to captain Prithvi Shaw, who was at the slips, and asked if they could take the new ball. Shaw agreed. Mukesh went over but the skipper soon went back to his spinners. It was a short hit but it showed that Mukesh is thinking beyond his own workload, reading the conditions and looking for a way to move the game forward. Maharashtra eventually phased out the services and sealed a 106-run lead in the first innings.

Mukesh bowled 13 overs in the first innings and took one wicket. He did not bowl in the second. Still, watching him at Palam’s, there was something comforting about the way he carried himself. Fit, strong and actively involved in the competition, he looked every bit the left-arm fast bowler who can make people sit up and watch. For a player whose career was repeatedly interrupted by injury, the small signs mattered.

Since his first-class debut in 2017, Mukesh has played just 24 matches in the format, alongside 26 List A games and 44 T20s. Injuries repeatedly interrupted his progress, keeping him out for long stretches just when he looked ready to go forward. Mukesh Choudhary is focusing on staying fit and bowling faster. (Photo: Instagram/mukesh__33)

But Mukesh started the 2026-27 season with a five-wicket haul for Rest of India against Jammu and Kashmir in the Irani Cup and was now preparing to travel to New Zealand with India A for multi-day matches. After years of stop-start, he was back in the voters’ field of vision.

“I feel great. Good start to the season in Iran. Now I will head to New Zealand. I am fully fit and mentally clear. No doubts,” Mukesh told IndiaToday.in.

Trust is not hard to understand. The Irani Cup performance was a reminder of what he can do when fit, but he also offered something more important: proof to himself that he belongs at this level.

“When you perform in a big game, you realize that you belong at that level and that you deserve to go even further,” he says.

“So you feel a lot of confidence and especially when the team is winning you have to aim in different situations. There were one or two lost spells but there was never any doubt that I couldn’t do it or that I didn’t belong at this level.

The challenge after an injury is not always just to prepare the body. There’s also the question of whether a returning pitcher can trust himself to do what he once did.

Mukesh knows the uncertainty. His troubles began in 2022 when a lateral strain and stress reaction was followed by another back injury. The recovery took nearly 18 months, a period in which it was necessary to rebuild the professional fast bowler’s routine from the smallest possible unit. Mukesh Choudhury (left) and Mukesh Kumar (right). (Photo: Instagram/mukesh__33)

“Sometimes I feel like I won’t be able to play the way I used to because back injuries are very difficult to heal and come back stronger,” he says.

“But that wasn’t the case for me. I was still doing my basics right, even the smallest things. I was doing the repetitions with full attention and I wasn’t taking any shortcuts.”

The comeback began with six balls that were delivered with ease before gradually increasing his load until he was able to bowl 10 overs with full run-up. There was no shortcut to the process, no dramatic moment where he suddenly felt ready to return. It was one day after another and it was getting to the point where bowling could become second nature again.

“It took me almost 18 months to come back from that injury,” he says.

“After that injury, I started bowling faster, almost 10 kilometers faster. So the rehabilitation and what happened to me was, I think, an experience for me to see how I can improve and what areas I can improve on.”

The increase in pace was an unexpected reward for the work that had been put into his rehabilitation. Mukesh says that before his back injury he used to operate at 130-135 kmph and now he can comfortably reach 140 kmph. He wants to maintain that speed without losing his ability to move the ball in both directions. For a left-handed seamer, this combination can be particularly useful, especially with the new ball.

“After that injury, my pace automatically picked up without me putting in that much extra effort. So I want to play at my top speed and still move the ball both ways. That’s the plan,” he says.

EDUCATION FROM MS DHONI

However, the physical improvement did not immediately translate into regular cricket. Mukesh’s confidence was initially affected by a lack of matches and the years after his breakthrough IPL season were stop-start. In 2022, he emerged as one of the most promising finds for Chennai Super Kings, taking 16 wickets in 13 matches to finish as the franchise’s leading wicket-taker. The following year, he missed the entire IPL season due to injury. His appearances remained limited in the seasons that followed.

For a pitcher who made such a strong first impression, the broken run was frustrating. But CSK’s support became an important part of his recovery. Mukesh first moved around the franchise as a pitcher in 2021 before being bought in the auction ahead of the 2022 season. He found an environment where he could learn from established players and find out what it took to survive at the highest level. Mukesh Choudhary credits MS Dhoni for teaching valuable lessons in CSK. (Photo: Instagram/mukesh__33)

A lot of that education came from MS Dhoni. Mukesh had earlier spoken about the former CSK captain’s advice to keep things simple, avoid pressure and walk away from mistakes. The message was not limited to the immediate challenge of bowling in an IPL match. Dhoni also made him think about what he needs to improve before he returns for the next season.

“Mahi bhai just says keep it simple and you have all the skills to play at this level, so keep learning,” says Mukesh. “His only advice to me is when you leave here after the IPL, come back next year with something better in your skills like yorkers, more accuracy in yorkers, better length control and mental strength. Those are the areas you need to improve. If you stay the same, the game will move forward and you won’t be able to catch up.”

That advice stuck with him, especially the idea that a bad day doesn’t have to become a permanent setback. Fast bowling can be ruthless and the T20 game gives players little time to recover when the batsmen attack. Mukesh says he learned at CSK that a good performance shouldn’t make a bowler complacent, just as a bad one shouldn’t define what comes next.

“If you’re having a good day, you’ve got to stay the same, and if you’re having a bad day, just learn from it and let it go,” he says. “

You can’t change anything, whether it’s a good day or a bad day.’

He also learns when on a tough day to back off rather than continue to attack.

“If I feel it’s not my day, that I’m not doing my length, yorkers and other deliveries, then I set a safe field and just try to give singles to the batsman rather than attacking them and giving away more runs,” he said.

MORE RED BALL CRICKET

For all the attention his IPL performances have brought him, Mukesh’s ambitions lie firmly in red-ball cricket. He enjoys the long spells of bowling, the patience it requires and the mental test of having to revisit the same task for hours. The Irani Cup five-for was therefore a more than useful feat ahead of the New Zealand tour. It came in a format that wants to play the most.

“My ultimate goal is to play more red ball cricket because T20 is a short game and if I play red ball I can play T20 anytime,” he says. “So I like playing red-ball cricket, I like bowling long spells and sometimes it tests your mentality and your patience. So that’s good.”

The India A tour offers another opportunity to test yourself in these conditions. It’s also a chance to build on the confidence he regained in the Irani Cup alongside a group that includes fellow fast bowler Akash Deep. Mukesh is not making elaborate plans for New Zealand. He wants to express himself, perform for the team and learn from the experience.

He is equally measured when asked about the goals he has set for the pre-IPL season. After spending so much time thinking about recovery, fitness and other opportunities, he’s afraid to dwell too much on what could happen.

“I don’t want to set any goals, because if you plan too much, you forget to live in the present and start thinking about outcomes and what will happen,” she says. “I just want to enjoy my cricket. I’m bowling well, I’m fit and I just want to hit the right length and that’s it.”

There is no grand declaration of an India debut, no promise to make up for the seasons he has lost. The immediate task is more modest and perhaps more difficult: to stay fit, to keep bowling and to be available often enough for opportunities to arise.

– The end