‘There were a lot of emotions, A whole lot of tears’: CSK Head Coach Stephen Fleming Reveals Dressing Room Reaction after Dhoni Broke the News
Iconic player MS Dhoni, who has given up his captaincy for the Chennai Super Kings, is going into the Indian Premier League (IPL) of 2024 as a pure wicket-keeper batter. Due to Dhoni’s choice to step down, Ruturaj Gaikwad assumed the position. Even if many had anticipated the decision, fans nevertheless experienced an emotional outpouring. Not much different was going on in the CSK changing room when the ‘Thala’ said he would be leaving as captain before the season began, causing eyes to well up with tears.
As Dhoni announced the news, head coach of the Chennai Super Kings, Stephen Fleming, described the moments in the dressing room.
“(When Dhoni broke the news) there were a lot of emotions. A whole lot of tears. There wasn’t a dry eye in the dressing room. Everyone was moved. Last time (when CSK changed the captain) we weren’t as prepared for MS to move and for a change in leadership,” Fleming said.
“There was also a round of congratulations to Ruturaj. He isn’t the most vocal person, but he has qualities to lead us in the right direction.”
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Dhoni stepped down from his position as captain of CSK two years prior, afterwhich Ravindra Jadeja had taken over. This is not the first time he has done so. However, that decision backfired, as Dhoni was asked to return to captain the team midway through the campaign. But Fleming anticipates a different tale this time.
“Well, the big thing about a couple of years ago was that we probably weren’t ready for MS to move aside,” Fleming said. “And what that did was probably shake us as a leadership group or coaches into looking at the possibility when he does go. And up until that stage, it was almost unthinkable, but it sowed the seed. So, we’ve worked pretty hard on making sure that any mistakes that were made during then aren’t made again. And that the leadership isn’t a secret.”
The post ‘There were a lot of emotions, A whole lot of tears’: CSK Head Coach Stephen Fleming Reveals Dressing Room Reaction after Dhoni Broke the News appeared first on Cricket Country.