“He will never spoon-feed us”: Shardul Thakur on how MS Dhoni pushed players to grow

The Indian pacer revealed that Dhoni helped the young players in the team grow as he pushed them hard so that they can be ready when he retires from all forms of cricket

Indian pacer Shardul Thakur has played under the great MS Dhoni for the IPL franchise, Chennai Super Kings (CSK). The veteran stepped down from captaining CSK in the latest season of the IPL, however he remained a key figure in the side throughout the tournament.

Dhoni is considered as one of the smartest brains in the cricketing world, as he is one of the few wicketkeepers who assists his bowlers from behind the stumps. He reads the game brilliantly, constantly chats with the bowlers and shares his plan to get the better of the batters.

Shardul revealed that Dhoni helped the younger players of the side a lot by pushing them to make their own plans so that they can be ready for the time when he retires from all forms of cricket.

“Playing with him has always been special because he allows us to grow. He allows us to come up with our own plan. So he will never spoon-feed us. He will say, ‘Tomorrow I might not be available behind the wickets. What will you do? Go back to your room, think about your game, and come up with your plans, if it doesn’t work then I will intervene,'” Shardul said at an event.

There is no clarity as to whether Dhoni will return as a CSK player for the IPL 2025 season. The franchise is still waiting for BCCI’s announcement of retention rules, and they will only make the final call after that.