Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain MS Dhoni became the first player ever to play 200 games in IPL, when he walked out for toss against Rajasthan Royals (RR) on Monday, October 19, 2020, in Abu Dhabi.
Dhoni was bought by the CSK franchise in the first-ever IPL auction in 2008 for $1.5 mn and has played for the franchise ever since. However, when CSK was suspended for two years in 2015, Dhoni played for Rising Pune Supergiants, captaining them in 2016 and playing under Steve Smith in 2017.
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He was then retained by CSK when they made their return to IPL in 2018. Dhoni has been an amazing player-captain for the franchise, leading them to three titles in 2010, 2011, and 2018. He is the only captain to win the tournament in two consecutive years.
During the toss before the match against RR, which Dhoni won, he told presenter Danny Morrison, “You spoke about it and that's how I got to know.”
The two-time World Cup-winning captain added, "It feels good but at the same time it's just a number. I feel fortunate to play for such a long time without many injuries." In a match that is important for both the teams, CSK won the toss and opted to bat at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium.
In 199 matches before his 200th match, Dhoni had made 4568 runs with 23 half-centuries, the best score of 84*, an average of 41.52, and a strike rate of 137.67. He has hit 306 fours and 215 sixes so far. Apart from his batting and captaincy, Dhoni’s wicketkeeping has been amazing as well, as he has 110 catches and 39 stumpings in the tournament.
