R Ashwin got his IPL debut at CSK under MS Dhoni. (Image: Reuters)

IPL throwback: How Ashwin got MS Dhoni to lose his cool and earn his big break at CSK

R Ashwin recalled how dismissing MS Dhoni in the Challenger Trophy and celebrating the wicket earned attention, helped him break into CSK, and began a long cricketing bond.

03 May 2026, 10:40 by Amar Sunil Panicker · India Today

In Short

Ashwin said dismissing MS Dhoni in the Challenger Trophy helped him earn CSK’s attention
The off-spinner recalled Dhoni was annoyed by his celebration after the wicket
Ashwin said Dhoni later became a key guide in shaping his role at CSK

For most young Indian bowlers, dismissing MS Dhoni is a moment to remember. For Ravichandran Ashwin, it became the turning point that helped shape his early years with Chennai Super Kings.

Long before he became one of India’s premier match-winners, Ashwin was a young off-spinner trying to break into a strong CSK side. With Dhoni leading the team and Muttiah Muralitharan operating as the lead spinner, chances were limited and competition for overs was intense.

Ashwin made his IPL debut for CSK in 2009 against Mumbai Indians in Cape Town. It was an understated beginning. CSK opted to field, Ashwin was not given an over, and with the chase ending in defeat, he was not required with the bat either.

At that stage, Ashwin was largely viewed as a useful net bowler rather than a regular starter. With Muralitharan delivering consistently in the middle overs, there was little room for a young off-spinner still trying to establish himself.

Reflecting on that period in a conversation on Jiostar, Ashwin admitted it took him several years to fully understand the situation.

“This situation took me a long time to understand — at least six or seven years,” Ashwin said. “I didn’t really have any other option. In that team, there was Muralitharan, a legend. He would come in and pick up wickets easily in his four overs. So I wasn’t getting many chances.”

The dismissal that changed the equation

Ashwin said the shift began during a Challenger Trophy match, when he finally got the opportunity to bowl to Dhoni.

He dismissed him twice, but it was his reaction to one of those wickets that stayed with him. Ashwin recalled celebrating the dismissal enthusiastically, prompting a response from Dhoni.

“I celebrated that wicket a lot — and he actually got a bit annoyed,” Ashwin said.

According to Ashwin, Dhoni asked him why he was celebrating so much, to which the off-spinner gave a candid reply.

“I told him, ‘Taking your wicket was my dream. If I get you out, maybe I’ll get a chance in the CSK team.’”

Ashwin would eventually get that opportunity, and the exchange became one of the early moments he remembers as significant in his journey with the franchise.

From fringe player to trusted option

Ashwin featured in only two matches in his debut IPL season, but his second appearance offered an early glimpse of what was to come. Against Punjab Kings, then Kings XI Punjab, he returned figures of 2 for 13 in a low-scoring win shaped by spin.

It was a modest beginning, but it marked the start of a gradual rise.

As Ashwin began bowling more regularly in the middle overs, his role within the side became more defined. He said Dhoni played a key part in that development, often guiding him from behind the stumps and helping him work through phases of an innings.

“Many times when I bowled in the middle overs, he would guide me from behind the stumps — telling me where to bowl, how to set things up,” Ashwin said.

That understanding developed into one of CSK’s most effective bowler-captain combinations, with Dhoni’s tactical input complementing Ashwin’s control and variation.

A message that stayed with him

Years later, when Ashwin reached 500 Test wickets, he said the first message he received was from Dhoni.

“He’s not known for being on the phone — everyone knows that. He’s not easily accessible. But his message came first,” Ashwin said. “It simply said: ‘Double it up.’”

For Ashwin, the message reflected the bond they had built over the years, beginning with a brief exchange after a wicket and growing into a relationship built on trust.

While Ashwin said he values many memories from that period, he identified one as the most significant from his early CSK years: dismissing Chris Gayle in the 2011 IPL final.

But as Ashwin’s recollection made clear, the path to that moment had begun much earlier, with a wicket, an animated celebration and an exchange that helped change the course of his IPL career.

- Ends