In a notable incident during the IPL 2019, MS Dhoni found himself embroiled in a tense exchange with the umpires, resulting in a controversial aftermath. Renowned for his calm demeanour, the former Indian captain usually makes headlines for his composed handling of pressure. Yet, even Dhoni has been known to lose his cool on rare occasions, and one such instance occurred during a match against the Rajasthan Royals at Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur.
The clash came down to a nail-biting last over when Chennai Super Kings were denied a no-ball after a waist-high full-toss delivery. At that moment, Dhoni was on the sidelines but could not contain his frustration, storming onto the field to confront the officials.
His then-teammate, Mohit Sharma, who has since fallen out of favour with the national team, shared his perspective on the incident. "We were all shouting from the dugout, ‘Don't go, don’t go!’ But he didn’t even look back. The way he stormed in, it was like a lion had entered the arena—he was visibly upset since he had just walked back to the pavilion," Mohit recounted on the YouTube channel '2 Sloggers'.
He continued, "It was a moment where he felt he shouldn't have been dismissed. We saw him approach, asking, ‘Didn’t he call that a no-ball?’ We were unsure whether to confirm, but ultimately, we said yes, the umpire had indicated a no-ball. After that, he wouldn’t back down."
Reflecting on the incident, Mohit expressed that while it was unfortunate, he found the episode entertaining. "I relayed the situation to our video analyst, who reviewed the footage and admitted, ‘Yes, that was a no-ball.’ He commented that whether they won or lost, it wasn’t right for a decision to be swayed by external pressure," Mohit explained.
In closing, he acknowledged the incident's unfortunate nature but added, "What happened was not ideal, but it was certainly amusing to witness."