MS Dhoni enjoys a massive fan following across India but his popularity in Chennai is on a different level. Over the years, the 42-year-old has brought many laurels for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and the fans of the franchise fondly calls him as Thala.

Whenever Dhoni comes out to bat, the Chennai crowd makes deafening noise. In fact, the crazy fans sometimes cheer the dismissal of their own team's batters so that they can see Dhoni wielding the willow.

Dhoni, who has barely batted in the ongoing IPL, promoted himself up to No. 5 spot against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at Chepauk on Monday (April 8), much to the delight of the crowd.

When Dhoni came out to bat, the match was almost done and he remained unbeaten on 1* off 3 balls in CSK’s emphatic seven-wicket victory over KKR.

Besides Dhoni, CSK players also had fun in the dugout. Right after Shivam Dube's dismissal, all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja walked out of the dugout to bat but that was only to tease the home fans.

After taking a few steps, Jadeja quickly returned to the bench, paving the way for Dhoni to enter the field. His act left the other CSK players and support staff members in splits.

Here’s the video:

Coming to the match, the defending champions restricted KKR to a below-par total of 137/9 after opting to bowl first. It was a listless batting display from the visitors as no one managed to touch the 40-run mark. Skipper Shreyas Iyer was the top scorer with 34 off 32 balls.

Ravindra Jadeja (3/18), Tushar Deshpande (3/33), Mustafizur Rahman (2/22) and Maheesh Theekshana (1/28) were among the wickets for CSK.

In reply, the hosts rode on captain Ruturaj Gaikwad’s measured knock of 67* in 58 balls to overhaul the target with 14 deliveries to spare.