IPL 2025: Sam Curran reveals MS Dhoni`s off-the-field persona

England all-rounder Sam Curran expressed his views on spending time with former Chennai Super Kings (CSK) skipper MS Dhoni. Curran stated that Dhoni`s stress-free, easy-to-talk persona has made him popular among people.

Sam Curran was speaking to former England captain Nasser Hussain on Sky Cricket Podcast.

Ahead of the IPL 2025, Sam Curran will now represent CSK after playing for the franchise in the 2020-21 edition. Speaking about MS Dhoni, Curran said, “The other night I was batting with MS and Jadeja (Ravindra Jadeja) 11.30 in the evening, I was thinking, where in the world would you do this? The lights were on and we were just smacking balls everywhere. And I was thinking, but you have all the local players around the group and they just sit there and they just watch MS. It is just more the aura of the guy. He is so easy to chat with and I think his calmness, I guess the big moments he`s been involved in.”

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“But he never seems to panic. I feel like the emotion on his face, he never really shows too much. And even in the hotel now, the guys always talk about, he leaves his room open, guys go and play FIFA with him, chat cricket and stuff like that. He obviously can`t leave the hotel much because he just gets absolutely mobbed,” he added.

Ahead of the IPL 2025, CSK will kick start their campaign against arch-rivals Mumbai Indians on March 23 at the Chepauk Stadium.

In the IPL 2025, MS Dhoni will play for CSK under Ruturaj Gaikwad`s leadership to lay his hands on his sixth title. In the previous edition of the cash-rich league, the Chennai-based franchise missed the chance to cement their place in the playoffs following a poor net run rate.

Whether the upcoming IPL season with Chennai Super Kings (CSK) will be the last for Dhoni is uncertain. But ever since he retired from international cricket in 2020, there have been speculations over when the legend will pull the curtains on a glorious IPL career.

CSK retained MS Dhoni for Rs 4 crore as an uncapped player ahead of the IPL 2025. The IPL introduced a new rule ahead of last year`s auction, allowing franchises to retain players in the uncapped category if they have not played international cricket for five years.

Since he retired from international cricket in 2020, Dhoni has only appeared in the IPL. In the 2024 season, he scored 161 runs at a strike rate of 220 and an average of 53.66 after 11 innings, staying unbeaten eight times and fulfilling the role of a finisher for the five-time champions.

Dhoni is the sixth-highest run-getter in IPL history, with 5,243 runs in 264 matches and 229 innings at an average of 39.12, a strike rate of 137.53 and 24 fifties. His best score is 84*. Other than CSK, he also played for Rising Pune Supergiant (RPG), a now-defunct franchise, from 2016-17.

(With ANI Inputs)