'He may have felt hurt': CSK CEO's truth bomb behind Jadeja getting irked by 'Dhoni' chants, cryptic 'Karma' tweet

The rumours of rift between Ravindra Jadeja and MS Dhoni that were circulating during the IPL 2023 have been quashed by Chennai Super Kings CEO Kasi Viswanathan. After CSK's captaincy conundrum last year which saw Dhoni relinquish the position to Jadeja before being made the captain again after a dismal start of the season, rumours of a difference between the two former India teammates were rife. Jadeja had even unfollowed CSK on Twitter which led to an absolute meltdown on Twitter but thankfully cooler heads prevailed and things went back to being normal between the two after Dhoni apparently convinced Jadeja to stay on with the franchise, a decision which in the long run benefitted both Jadeja and CSK as the all-rounder hit the winning runs to give Chennai a record-equalling fifth IPL championship.

However, this year, the rumours returned, more so after Jadeja once told the broadcasters 'They wait for me to get out', in reference to fans chanting 'We want Dhoni'. This led to Jadeja posting a series of cryptic tweets on Twitter, although he never mentioned Dhoni anywhere. Ending his silence on the entire development, Viswanathan said that while Jadeja may have felt bad, he never had any anti-feelings towards Dhoni.

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"As far as Jadeja is concerned, he bowled superbly. While batting, our line-up of Ruturaj, Conway, Moeen, Rahane, with the results, whenever he [Jadeja] went in to bat, he had 5-10 balls left. In such situations, it can or can't click sometimes. But the thing is he also knew Dhoni was to come in next, and he himself would get just 2-3 balls sometimes. In such situations whenever he went in, the crowd used to welcome Dhoni. In a way, he may have felt hurt. Any player for that matter may have had that pressure. But he didn't complain about it even though he put out a tweet," he told ESPNCricinfo.

In the same match – against Delhi Capitals – a fuming Dhoni's heated conversation with Jadeja, which further fuelled reports of friction between the two. After the match, Viswanathan himself was spotted speaking to Jadeja. However, the reports turned baseless when Jadeja hugged Dhoni in a one-of-a-kind gesture after leading CSK to a win and then changing his DP to that of the CSK captain.

"It's all part and parcel of the game. After the last game, people saw videos online and assumed I'm pacifying Jadeja, but it wasn't like that. I was talking to him about the match, what he did. We didn't have any other discussion. Everyone knows in a team environment, what happens in the dressing room, no one is privy to it outside. We don't have any problem. He always had high respect for Dhoni. After the final also, he said, 'I dedicate this knock to Dhoni.' That is the kind of respect he has for MS," Viswanathan added.