After Chennai Super Kings played its last home match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 season against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at MA Chidambaram Stadium on May 14, CSK players led by MS Dhoni performed a victory lap around the ground to thank Chennai fans for their support to the team throughout the season. During that Thanksgiving ceremony, legendary Indian cricketer and former captain Sunil Gavaskar, who was part of the commentary panel, came to MS Dhoni and asked for an autograph, to which the former Indian skipper obliged. The video of that heartwarming moment between the two greats of the game made headlines, and it was one of the highlights of the season. Gavaskar spoke about that moment during his commentary stint in IPL 2023, but now Dhoni, who is playing for CSK in IPL 2025, has also opened up about that moment, which at first took him by surprise. While speaking in a video interview on Jio Hotstar, when asked about that autograph moment with Gavaskar, Dhoni said, “It was very close to my heart when he asked for an autograph, and I was like, ‘Okay what needs to be done.’ My immediate reaction was, ‘Okay an autograph has been asked, give the autograph.'” Speaking about Gavaskar, who was the first batter to score 10,000 runs in Test cricket, Dhoni said, “He is a great of the game. Since I have started playing cricket, there are few names when it comes to that era, and even before that, Sunny Bhai (Sunil Gavaskar) name is always there. Especially the way he played the West Indian fast bowling unit, you know it was not like one fast bowler or two fast bowlers and the way he performed.” “So if you see, we call it a gentleman’s game, but you need that strength; you need to be brave. We all have a bit of fear, but unless there is fear, we won’t be brave; we won’t be courageous, and his performances have been like that. Something like that, when he says it, it means a lot. Which means he is very happy with what I have been doing on and off the field. I have also committed mistakes, but more often than not. So I feel it’s like a stamp of approval,” he added. According to Dhoni, Gavaskar is witty at times and he loves that side of him “But you know Sunny Bhai is also very witty at times. I love that side of him, but we have all looked up to him; we have seen and gathered a lot of courage when were in that adverse situation, and this is what is needed from international cricketers and especially Indian cricketers. You know that’s how much cricket is respected in India.”