MS Dhoni vs Ravindra Jadeja: What CSK CEO said on ‘rift’ between the legends

“As far as Jadeja is concerned, he bowled superbly. While batting, our line-up of Ruturaj, Conway, Moeen, and Rahane, with the results, whenever he [Jadeja] went in to bat, he had 5-10 balls left. In such situations, it can or can’t click sometimes. But the thing is he also knew Dhoni was to come in next, and he himself would get just 2-3 balls sometimes. In such situations whenever he went in, the crowd used to welcome Dhoni. In a way, he may have felt hurt. Any player for that matter may have had that pressure. But he didn’t complain about it even though he put out a tweet,” Kasi Viswanathan told ESPNCricinfo.

High respect for MS Dhoni

Kasi Viswanathan said people misjudged the situation and Ravindra Jadeja always had high respect for MS Dhoni. He even dedicated in his final innings to the skipper, the CSK CEO said. 

“It’s all part and parcel of the game. After the last game, people saw videos online and assumed I’m pacifying Jadeja, but it wasn’t like that. I was talking to him about the match, what he did. We didn’t have any other discussion. Everyone knows in a team environment, what happens in the dressing room, no one is privy to it outside. We don’t have any problem. He always had high respect for Dhoni. After the final also, he said, ‘I dedicate this knock to Dhoni.’ That is the kind of respect he has for MS,” he added.

The claims of the rift started after MS Dhoni and Ravindra Jadeja were seen arguing about something on the field. During that time Ravindra Jadeja shared some cryptic tweets on ‘Karma’, which were also retweeted by his wife. On another occasion, he shared a picture of receiving the ‘Upstox Most Valuable Player’ award said that ‘Even Upsox knows, but not some fans.’

Updated: 22 Jun 2023, 02:41 PM IST