‘Heera hee Heera ko pehchane’ – Fans react as AB de Villiers says MS Dhoni is the ‘GOAT of IPL’

MS Dhoni played a blistering innings of 32* off 17 deliveries against Rajasthan at the Chepauk Stadium on Wednesday. However, he could not inspire his team to victory. As later revealed by his coach, Stephen Fleming, Dhoni was struggling with pain in the knee and a rather serious hamstring issue. He was unable to run hard and could not convert the singles into doubles which made a great difference in the run chase. In the end, Rajasthan Royals secured a meagre 3-run win, with Ravichandran Ashwin being adjudged the man of the match for his two wickets and 30 runs.

After the game, many fans and cricket personalities opened up on MS Dhoni’s fighting innings despite not being a hundred per cent match fit. Of the many reactions, one subsequently gained higher traction on the Internet. Former IPL great AB de Villiers opined that MS Dhoni is the ‘GOAT of IPL.’ The statement sparked reactions from fans.

‘His fitness has always been very professional’ – Stephen Fleming

“He is nursing a knee injury, which you can see in some of his movement, which is hindering him somewhat,” Fleming said about MS Dhoni after the game. “But still, what you saw today is a great player for us. His fitness has always been very professional.”

The Chennai skipper has been taking care of this troublesome knee since the IPL 2023 season began, and his participation in the opener against the defending champions Gujarat Titans was also in question. Fleming quickly praised him for being able to control his fitness.

“He comes a month before the tournament starts, so he doesn’t get the opportunity to do a lot (before that),” Fleming said. “He will stay fit, they will do some netting in Ranchi, but his main pre-season (fitness) is done a month before when he comes to Chennai. And he works his way back into match form, and I think you can still see he’s playing pretty well. So we never have any doubts about the way he manages himself, and he always gets himself up to speed,” the CSK head coach added.

Here’s how fans reacted:

https://twitter.com/Pranavkbfc/status/1646496974798217225

Absolutely Wrong

Ms Dhoni is a GOAT of World Cricket

— CommentaryBox (@propnetwork1) April 13, 2023

Heera hee heera ko pehchane

— Cricket Fan 07 (@Manas_pr_sharma) April 13, 2023

https://twitter.com/JD_is_Boss/status/1646496017112784896

🔥ya he is pic.twitter.com/sYzw6Nbsxq

— SARAN 🔥😎 (@Saravan30225739) April 13, 2023

https://twitter.com/Tharane__Talks/status/1646497082562478080

https://twitter.com/IconicRcb/status/1646497123087810561

https://twitter.com/GajalaB22/status/1646495561321947137