CHENNAI: It had been five minutes after Sunrisers Hyderabad had beaten Chennai Super Kings to qualify for playoffs. Usually by now, the fans at the MA Chidambaram Stadium would have started to disperse. But on Monday night, they all stood in silence even as the franchise brought out the banners on to the field to thank the fans after what was their last home game.
The wait, amongst fans, was for one man — MS Dhoni. They got a glimpse of him during the innings break, but now a lap of honour was expected. The post-match presentation and the arrangements were going on side-by-side while the full capacity crowd patiently waited. There were cheers for Suresh Raina and R Ashwin, who were on broadcast duties, but the wait continued for the big man.
About half an hour later, around midnight, the lap of honour eventually began with Dhoni in the centre. The DJ at the venue blasted the usual CSK-Tamil classics as Dhoni slowly moved along the boundary ropes while the youngsters threw souvenirs into the stands, thanking the fans. Sanju Samson was quietly walking in one corner while Dhoni had a laugh with everyone who came along, and even stopped briefly to catch up with Raina. They shared a laugh briefly before Dhoni and CSK continued the lap. Chants of Dhoni, Dhoni, Dhoni…. CSK, CSK, CSK continued to reverberate across the stands and the neighbourhood. As the players gathered for a group picture with the ground staff, Dhoni joined in last, sitting next to Gurjapneet Singh.
The moment to remember, perhaps, came when the former India captain borrowed the mobile phones of accredited photographers to take multiple selfies with them.
While all this was happening, head coach Stephen Fleming reflected on what has been a season to forget (they still have an outside chance to qualify). Asked if he would be there next year in the same post, Fleming kept it precise: “Well, it's always a choice for the management.”
“There's been a lot of talk about it, but MS has been around a lot this year, which has been really important for the team, for a lot of young players and continuity. So he's been a big part; he hasn't played, but he's still had a big influence on the team. There are a lot of good things we've done. We've introduced some new players that will hopefully be generation players for the CSK, but I know we judged on results, that's fair. So yeah, that's management,” he said.
When asked if he had any talks with Dhoni about the next season, Fleming denied, saying,” No, just working through this one.” No one may know the answer to that one except Dhoni. But for one night, that perhaps did not matter to the 35,908-strong CSK faithful who had been waiting for their ‘Thala tharisanam’ — to get a glimpse of Dhoni. The former captain, who won five IPL titles and two Champions League T20 titles, had arrived at the venue on a match day for the first time this season, but had not come out of the dressing room in the first few hours. CSK fans waited, watching their team push their way to 180/7.
Then, the entire Chepauk went dark with the flashlights coming out. Anticipation grew as chairs were laid out for a team picture in front of a pavilion. The black digital boundary hoardings showed a lion running around the ground while the tag - #7 THALA ROARING SINCE 2008 - flashed in the small screens around the stands. Slowly, the crowd got on their feet, with consistent cheer. The venue was pitch dark, the fans had their cue when the venue DJ played a famous Rajinikanth song from the movie Padayappa that goes — Thalati Valarththathu Tamizhnadu Mannappa (I was raised by the love of Tamil Nadu soil).
The roar that followed, despite the darkness in front except for the flashlight in the stands, made one think of the famous Mitchel Starc quote about MS Dhoni on Willow Talk podcast from two years ago. “100,000 people at the MCG doesn't stand a chance against 35,000 people at Chennai when MS Dhoni comes out to bat. Its actually ridiculous,” Starc had said.
Monday night was evidence of that, even as they waited in the dark to see Dhoni once. The lights came on around 9.30 PM, and the full capacity crowd brought the stadium to a standstill. Such were the cheers for Dhoni, especially when the DJ played the famous Ne Singam Dhaan song (You are the lion), that it felt like the iconic venue was falling apart. The ecstasy was shared by thousands, even if they were in the vicinity, going about their business quietly.
It lasted only a few minutes, but the fans knew that Dhoni would come back again to thank them after the match. And when he did, they stayed on, chanting ‘Dhoni, Dhoni, Dhoni’..’CSK,CSK,CSK’ well past 12.30AM till fireworks went off as Dhoni and his teammates walked back into the dressing room.
They would still be hoping for that outside chance for CSK to qualify, for Dhoni to lift the trophy once again. But that is tomorrow’s worry. For the night, all that mattered to them was seeing their Thala Dhoni up close. And they walked back with a beaming smile on their faces.
