13 years after Sunil Gavaskar bowed down to salute Sachin Tendulkar for his maiden ODI double century, the Indian batting legend made a similarly grand gesture to mark his love and respect for MS Dhoni when he hopped out of an ongoing show and skipped straight to the CSK captain to have him sign on his shirt after CSK’s last league phase match at the Chepauk.
CSK met KKR in their last league phase game on Sunday at the Cheapauk. And although CSK lost the match, the faithful CSK crowd remained behind to shower love to Mahendra Singh Dhoni who was potentially playing for the last time in Chepauk.
Soon after the match, Mahendra Singh Dhoni and the CSK camp gave a lap of honor to thank the CSK crowd for their constant support in the ground and online. Dhoni led his troops to walk around the periphery of the Chepauk stadium. Nearby, Gavaskar was with Kevin Pietersen for a show for Star Sports.
When Mahendra Singh Dhoni and CSK camp cross them, Gavaskar quickly stepped into the group and jogged toward MS Dhoni. The pair embraced in a hug before Gavaskar asked MS Dhoni for an autograph on his shirt. The CSK captain duly obliged. They hugged again before Gavaskar returned to his duties.
Watch: Sunil Gavaskar asks MS Dhoni for an autograph on his shirt
Proof that @msdhoni is the legend of legends!
During @ChennaiIPL's lap of honour for their wonderful fans, #SunilGavaskar rushed to Dhoni and a truly #Yellovemoment was created by the two legends!
Tune-in to #IPLOnStar LIVE every day.#BetterTogether pic.twitter.com/hzDDdMkYjG
— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) May 15, 2023
This was a moment that broke the internet on Sunday night.
“This is unbelievable… this is what Dhoni has earned in his career. The respect,” said a fan on Twitter..
“Moment of the day. Legend autographed by legend,” another tweeted.
Talking about the match, CSK posted 144 runs on the board courtesy of 30 from Devon Conway and 48* from Shivam Dube. KKR had a bad start and they slipped to 33/3. After that, however, left-handers Rinku Singh and skipper Nitish Rana took the mantle into their own hands with a partnership of 99 runs which all but saw KKR home.
Speaking about the points table, CSK remain at the second position in the points table with 15 points in 13 matches while KKR are at 7th position with 12 points in 13 games.
CSK’s playoff qualification is still in their own hands: they will qualify for playoffs if they win their last league game and reach 17 points. For KKR, they can only reach 14 points and need a spate of other results to go their way.
What are CSK’s chances to reach playoffs in IPL 2023:
Despite the loss vs KKR, CSK have a 90% chance to reach the playoffs. A win in their last league game will take them to 17 points and ensure their playoff qualification. However, a top 2 spot is also out of their hands now as both MI and GT can go to 18 points.
