Irfan Pathan shared advice with Chennai Super Kings (CSK) fans as MS Dhoni took over captaincy of the franchise for the rest of IPL 2025. This was because Ruturaj Gaikwad suffered a fracture of his elbow and has been ruled out of the competition.

Dhoni will start his third term as CSK captain, having done it previously when Ravindra Jadeja was chosen captain against KKR on Friday in Chennai.

Speaking before the match, former cricketer Irfan Pathan issued a warning to cricket fans, asking them to attack stars like Dhoni in numbers and with respect.

“I have something to tell everyone. Criticize Dhoni; criticize him with numbers in a straightforward and direct manner. MS Dhoni doesn't want that he doesn't perform; he doesn't want that. We criticized big players, and we should, and I feel how fans criticize; they should do it if some player is not performing. They are the biggest stakeholders, and they have the utmost right, but they should not disrespect someone; they should not cross that line,” Pathan said on his YouTube channel.

He cautioned fans not to cross the line while criticizing someone like Dhoni, given his impressive resume for both his country and the IPL squad.

“MS Dhoni is a big player, a champion cricketer. He is a former India captain; under his captaincy, the team won a lot of trophies, and he was a match-winner. He is not a match-winner now; he can't win matches now. Yes, we should criticize that, but the memes I see on social media, please don't do that. Talk with numbers, and I will also support you. We will also criticize, but with respect, and that's my advice to all of you,” he added.

KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane won the toss and chose to bowl first in Chennai against CSK. CSK has lost 4 of their matches since winning their IPL 2025 opener against MI.