In India, almost every young cricketer grows up worshipping someone. Some copy batting stances in the mirror, others try to bowl like their heroes in narrow streets after school. For Sanju Samson’s favourite cricketer, the answer was always simple — MS Dhoni. And now, years later, with rumours swirling around MS Dhoni playing next match for CSK again, Samson’s old fanboy stories suddenly feel even more emotional for cricket fans.
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The First Time He Saw Dhoni
When Samson recently spoke on the Super Kings Podcast, he sounded less like an international cricketer and more like a kid remembering the moment he fell in love with the game. For anyone wondering about Sanju Samson’s idol cricketer, his answer carried genuine warmth.
“I was in 4th or 5th standard, very small then. I remember seeing this guy with long hair walking out to bat for India. He would get out in a couple of games and then suddenly score a hundred against Pakistan. He scored 183, then he kept scoring big runs after that. From that moment, I became a huge fan of his,” Samson said.
That innings changed everything for him. Back then, Dhoni didn’t look like the traditional Indian cricketer. The long hair, the fearless sixes, the swagger — it felt different. Youngsters across the country were obsessed, and Sanju Samson’s favourite cricketer quickly became the centre of his cricketing world.
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The most charming part of Samson’s story is probably how ordinary it sounds. Before the fame, before the IPL contracts, before captaining franchises, he was simply another kid trying to stay close to his hero.
“He was everywhere after that — posters, media, advertisements. He used to feature in Boost ads. At home, we used to drink Boost and there was a sticker on the bottle. I remember cutting Mahi’s face out from that poster and sticking it on my diary,” Samson recalled.
That line alone tells you everything about how deeply Sanju Samson’s idol cricketer influenced him growing up. It was never just about batting numbers or trophies. Dhoni became part of the culture. Kids copied his hairstyle. School notebooks had his pictures. Every tennis-ball match had someone pretending to finish games like “Mahi”.
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From Fanboy To Teammate
What makes the story even more surreal is how life has gone full circle for Samson. The boy who once cut Dhoni’s picture out of a sticker now shares a dressing room with him at Chennai Super Kings.
“From that moment to where I am now, what more can I say? I sit with him, talk with him, play games with him, go to his room and ask him anything I want. He advises me as well. It’s been a dream, actually more than a dream. I think any kid would dream about this and I feel very fortunate to be here,” Samson said.
Honestly, you could hear the disbelief in his words. Even after becoming an established IPL name himself, Sanju Samson’s favourite cricketer still feels larger than life to him. That mentor-student relationship inside the CSK camp has quietly become one of the nicest stories of IPL 2026.
Related Article：CSK’s IPL 2026 Qualification Scenario — How Many Slip-Ups Left Before It’s Over?
MS Dhoni Travelling With CSK?
Now comes the big question everyone is asking: is MS Dhoni playing next match for Chennai Super Kings against Lucknow Super Giants? At the moment, nobody knows for certain. But reports have definitely increased excitement among CSK supporters. RevSportz journalist Rohit Juglan recently posted that Dhoni is likely to travel with the squad to Lucknow ahead of the upcoming fixture.
MS Dhoni likely to travel to Lucknow tomorrow
— Rohit Juglan (@rohitjuglan) May 12, 2026
Even that alone matters massively. Throughout IPL 2026, Dhoni’s presence around the squad has acted like an emotional boost for younger players. Several emerging cricketers inside the CSK setup have openly spoken about how calm the dressing room feels whenever Dhoni is around. The franchise had already confirmed earlier this season that injuries would force him to miss multiple matches. Later, further reports suggested he was dealing with additional fitness concerns and working specifically on improving movement between the wickets. Because of that, the mystery surrounding MS Dhoni playing next match has continued almost every week.
CSK Still Fighting
The timing is important as well. CSK are still battling to keep their playoff hopes alive. Their recent victory against LSG showed promise, especially with the top order playing aggressively, but the middle order still looked shaky at times. Ruturaj Gaikwad has kept the side competitive, while younger players have stepped up bravely under pressure. But everyone knows the emotional effect Dhoni carries inside this franchise. Even if he doesn’t play, simply having him around the dugout changes the atmosphere.
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That’s probably why fans remain obsessed with updates regarding MS Dhoni playing next match. At 44, with injuries piling up, every possible appearance now feels important. For Samson, though, the story goes beyond one match or one season. Sanju Samson’s idol cricketer shaped his childhood memories. He shaped his understanding of leadership, calmness, and finishing games under pressure.
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And perhaps that’s why cricket fans connected so strongly with Samson’s words. Deep down, many supporters probably saw themselves in that little kid cutting Dhoni stickers out of Boost bottles years ago. Now that same kid walks into the CSK dressing room and casually chats with his hero before training. Cricket can be brilliant like that sometimes.
