MS Dhoni taught me confidence without overconfidence: CSK star Dewald Brevis

Dewald Brevis may have exploded onto the IPL scene as ‘Baby AB’ but the Chennai Super Kings batsman says one of the biggest lessons of his career came from just watching and learning from MS Dhoni. Brevis revealed that Dhoni taught him the difference between confidence and overconfidence, advice that has stuck with him during his time at CSK.

The South African youngster has spent the last two seasons in the Chennai Super Kings dressing room after first joining the franchise in IPL 2025 as an injury replacement for Gurjapneet Singh. Speaking to ANI about Dhoni’s influence, Brevis admitted that the former CSK skipper’s words left a lasting impact on him very soon after his stint with the franchise.

“We are having talks,” Brevis said while talking about Dhoni.

“The best advice I got from MS Dhoni was in the first year. He told me that you have two sides: you get overconfidence and overconfidence and just to earn more on the confidence side. That was the one piece of advice from him that really stuck with me,” Brevis added.

The youngster also showed how simply watching Dhoni in a team environment became an educational experience in itself.

“Anytime I’ve been in an environment that he’s in and just seen how he does his thing and how he lives, the person that he is is just being himself, and that’s really amazing to see,” Brevis said.

“Obviously how humble he is and how he carries himself whether he’s on or off the field, I’ve seen both just to look at it.

Brevis also admitted that Dhoni’s experience with different situations and pressure moments continues to make him one of the biggest influences in the CSK dressing room despite missing almost the entire IPL 2026 season due to injury.

“He’s been in so many different situations, he’s played so many different strokes and amazing strokes, and yeah, you just learn from him just by watching sometimes,” Brevis said.

“It’s great to have him. It’s like he’s a part of us as far as training and stuff. I wish he could play, as I think a lot of people wish he could.”

HOW WAS CSK STINT DEWALD BREVISE?

Brevis made an immediate impact after joining Chennai Super Kings during IPL 2025 as a replacement signing.

The South African batsman completely transformed CSK’s middle order during his short breakout season, smashing 225 runs in just six innings at an average of 37.50 and a terrifying strike rate of 180.00.

Nicknamed “Baby AB” due to his similarity in style to AB de Villiers, Brevis quickly became one of the most entertaining players in the tournament. He smashed 17 sixes in just six innings and immediately gave CSK a much more explosive final form.

One of his decisive knocks came against Gujarat Titans when he smashed a match-winning 57 off just 23 balls to duly announce himself in yellow.

This explosive finish to IPL 2025 convinced CSK to retain him for the 2026 season as part of their longer-term middle-order plans.

However, this season was a bit quieter for the youngster.

In 10 matches in IPL 2026, Brevis scored 143 runs at an average of 20.43 and a strike rate of 132.41, mostly operating in the middle order.

But despite the drop in consistency, there were still flashes of the same fearless hitting.

His counter-attack of 44 off 27 balls against Sunrisers Hyderabad helped pull CSK out of trouble during a difficult innings, while knocks of 41 against Kolkata Knight Riders and 25 off 16 against Lucknow Super Giants also showed flashes of his finishing ability.

More importantly for CSK, Brevis still remains one of the younger players the franchise clearly sees as a big long-term project.

MS DHONI’S INJURY DELETED IPL 2026

Meanwhile, IPL 2026 has turned out to be one of CSK’s strangest seasons in recent years due to MS Dhoni’s prolonged injury absence.

The legendary wicketkeeper suffered a calf strain during pre-season training, an injury that was initially expected to sideline him only briefly. But repeated setbacks during his rehabilitation, including a thumb injury sustained in the nets, eventually ruled him out for the entire league stage.

Dhoni ended up missing 14 consecutive matches and still hasn’t officially returned to the playing XI.

Although he remained unavailable, his presence in the team continued to dominate attention throughout the season.

One of the biggest moments came during CSK’s last home match against Sunrisers Hyderabad when Dhoni entered the field during the innings break in full CSK colors to join the team photograph. The sight immediately sparked massive celebrations from Chepauk’s crowd, even though he wasn’t even playing.

And inside the dressing room too, younger players like Brevis clearly still see Dhoni as one of the biggest influences around the franchise.

– The end

Issued by:

Debodinna Chakraborty

Published on:

20 May 2026 23:20 IST