Indian national team cricketer Khaleel Ahmed has opened up about his relationship with former captain MS Dhoni. He said the batsman is not his friend or elder brother but his guru and recalled an incident where the legend of the game gifted him flowers.
MS Dhoni’s aura in Indian cricket is unmatched. Being the most successful captain in the history of Indian cricket, the wicketkeeper-batsman is also credited with making the careers of many players. The way he has guided many young players is the most prominent feature of his career.
One of the players who is among the cricketers coached by MS Dhoni is left-handed fast bowler Khaleel Ahmed. The fast bowler is one of the best in the country and one of the fast bowlers who are being eyed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for the future.
Khaleel Ahmed also made his debut under Mrs Dhoni. The left-hander played his first ODI in the 2018 Asia Cup match against Afghanistan during the tournament when stand-in captain Rohit Sharma missed out due to injury and went on to play a decent role for his team.
Khaleel Ahmed spoke about his camaraderie with MS Dhoni and said that the wicketkeeper-batsman is his guru. He also stated that during his debut, when Dhoni gave him the first over, he quickly ran towards his run-out as he was afraid that the captain might take the ball away from him. He also revealed that Zaheer Khan was his idol. In an interview with Aakash Chopra on his YouTube channel, he explained:
“Mahi Bhai is not my friend or my elder brother, he is my guru. Since I was a child, I wanted to become the bowler who bowled the first over for India as I had seen Zaheer Khan growing up.
“In the Asia Cup, Mahi Bhai asked me to bowl the first over. I ran as hard as I could, away from the group, thinking that if I gave him time, he might change his mind.”
Mr Dhoni gave me flowers – Khaleel Ahmed
Khaleel Ahmed further recalled a funny anecdote from New Zealand with MS Dhoni. He said that when some of the fans gave flowers to the wicketkeeper-batsman, he passed them to the pacer. He explained:
“We were in New Zealand, Mahi Bhai’s fans had given him flowers, he handed them to me and some fans took a picture, it was very memorable for me.”
MS Dhoni was last seen in action during IPL 2024, where he played as a specialist wicketkeeper batsman with Ruturaj Gaikwad.
There is a lot of speculation about the future of the league. In the last year, he scored 161 runs in 11 innings at an average of 53.66 and a strike rate of 220.54, with a best score of 37* and a total of 14 fours and 13 sixes in the season. It remains to be seen whether he plays next season or not.
