Dhoni Warned Rayudu ‘Don’t Cost Me Fair Play Points’—Then Charged Onto Pitch in Heated Umpire Confrontation
SPORT
In IPL 2019, MS Dhoni cautioned Ambati Rayudu to keep his cool, saying he didn’t want to lose Fair Play points on his account.
MS Dhoni has long been celebrated for his composure under pressure, earning him the nickname “Captain Cool.” Rarely did he let emotions boil over. Ambati Rayudu, on the other hand, was his polar opposite—expressive, fiery, and prone to on-field outbursts.
When Rayudu joined Chennai Super Kings, Dhoni made his expectations clear. Speaking on JioCinema’s Cheeky Singles, Rayudu revealed that Dhoni often reminded him to keep his temper in check, saying he didn’t want to lose Fair Play points because of him. “Sometimes, Mahi bhai would tell me—just like a tin roof heats up quickly, I also tend to lose my cool quickly. If a ball looked like a wide or a no-ball, he’d tell me, ‘Just focus on batting, don’t raise your hand. I don’t want to lose Fair Play points because of you,’” Rayudu recalled.
But in a twist of irony, the same IPL 2019 season saw Dhoni himself in an uncharacteristic flash of anger. During a tense match against Rajasthan Royals, with CSK needing 8 runs from 3 balls, Ben Stokes bowled a delivery initially signaled as a no-ball. The call was then reversed, prompting Dhoni to storm onto the pitch to confront the umpires—a rare and fiery display from the usually calm skipper. “Interestingly, that same year, he himself walked onto the field—not because of me, but because we were losing,” Rayudu quipped.
Between 2018 and 2023, Rayudu scored 1,932 runs for CSK in 90 matches, cementing his place as a key contributor during the franchise’s successful run.