Harbhajan Singh Takes A U-turn On MS Dhoni; Backtracks On His Own Words

India’s former spin all-rounder, Harbhajan Singh, has taken a U-turn to praise the commitment of MS Dhoni before the 2025 season of the Indian Premier League. He reckoned that it would never become an easy job to practice for three hours every day in the heat of Chennai.

Dhoni, because of the BCCI reactivating the old uncapped rule for retirement players, was retained by the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) for just INR 4 crore. The new rules have revealed that the players not featured for the country in the last five years would get the uncapped tag.

“MS Dhoni is the first one to come to the practice and the last one to leave”- Harbhajan Singh

The former off-spinner highlights how hard it becomes for a player to be away from the game for seven months and then participate in an intense tournament like the IPL.

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“It’s hard without playing any cricket in between, but he is showing how it is done. He must be doing something better than the others. MS Dhoni is not just surviving but is dominating all the bowlers, including the international players and top domestic players.” Singh addressed this during a recent interaction on ESPNcricinfo.

“The practice that he has done for two and half months, he must be facing so many deliveries. It’s unbelievable. MS Dhoni is the first one to come to the ground and the last one to leave.” The former spinner stated.

The veteran feels that the more balls one hits a batter, the more they will find the natural flow and timing of the shot. The former wicket-keeper batter for India goes through the same process.

The more balls you hit in the nets, you start to find your timing and flow, and then, you can get the sixes going. He bats for 2-3 hours every day in Chennai, and that’s what matters. At this age, this the difference.” Harbhajan added.

“The tournament starts on the 22nd of March. There is a good chance that he started the practice on February 01. So he was doing that practice for one and half months.” Aakash Chopra, who is also present in the show, stated.

MS Dhoni’s IPL performance since international retirement

The 43-year-old struggled in 2020, the very first season after he took retirement, with 200 runs in 12 innings at an average of 25 and a strike rate of 106.54. In 2021, when the Yellow franchise won their fourth title in the league, Dhoni went through another tough season with 114 runs in 11 innings at a strike rate of 106.54.

MS Dhoni clubbed 232 runs in 13 innings at an average of 33.14 and a strike rate of 123.40. He started to push himself lower in the batting order to aim for only big sixes during the 2023 season, as he drilled 104 runs at a strike rate of 182.45.

Last year, the Ranchi-born started to come at eight which raised questions among many fans of the CSK side. He ended with 161 runs in IPL 2024 at a strike rate of 220.54 at a best score of 37*.

🗣️ "He is the first one to come to the ground and the last one to leave" - Harbhajan Singh on MS Dhoni pic.twitter.com/LrHULdP5h6

— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) March 17, 2025

CSK to start IPL 2025 campaign on March 23

To see their Thala MS Dhoni, the fans will be together at the MA Chidambaram Stadium for their opening game of the IPL 2025 against the Mumbai Indians on March 23.

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The Chennai side will then face the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in their second fixture, which will be played at home on March 28. The team's first away game will be against the Rajasthan Royals at the Barsapara Stadium in Guwahati on March 30.