Throughout his career, MS Dhoni was known as someone who didn’t let emotions get the better of him. Dhoni stayed calm – even in the most tense situations – which earned him the tag of Mr. Cool.
But he was human after all, and there were rare moments when even Dhoni didn’t mask his anger.
Ambati Rayudu was completely the opposite of Dhoni – very expressive – and had multiple outbursts on and off the field. When Rayudu joined CSK, MS Dhoni was very clear about what he wants Rayudu to do, and what not to do.
Rayudu recently revealed that Dhoni, irked by his frequent on-field outbursts, ordered him to focus on batting and not let frustration take over, saying that he doesn’t want to lose Fair Play points because of him.
“Sometimes, Mahi bhai would tell me – just like a tin roof heats up quickly, I also tend to lose my cool quickly,” Rayudu said on the JioCinema show Cheeky Singles.
“We would point out to the umpire that a delivery was wide or a no-ball, and he would always tell me, ‘Just focus on batting, don’t raise your hand. I don’t want to lose Fair Play points because of you,” Rayudu added.
Rayudu, however, poked fun at MS Dhoni because the very same season, the world saw a never-seen-before avatar of Dhoni. During an IPL match against Rajasthan Royals in 2019, Dhoni stormed onto the field, fuming at the umpires over a no-ball call. With just 8 runs required from the final three deliveries, Ben Stokes bowled a delivery that was first declared a no-ball, but the decision was later reversed, leaving Dhoni bemused.
“Interestingly, that same year, he himself walked onto the field – not because of me, but because we were losing,” Rayudu added.