MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli are two cult figures in Indian cricket. While one is the most successful Indian captain, winning three out of the four ICC trophies, the other is the country's most prolific ODI run-scorer, having hit 51 centuries and counting. The two have shared the dressing room for over a decade, playing alongside and against each other since 2008.

Advertisment

Although their on-field partnerships have helped India taste enormous success over the years, their bond goes beyond the cricket field; however, Dhoni admits there still lies a line in their friendship.

Meanwhile, even years after Dhoni’s international retirement, he continues to make headlines in the cash-rich Indian Premier League. With Dhoni’s CSK set to host Kohli’s RCB in the 18th edition, the veteran IPL batter reflected on his friendship with Kohli, praising India’s best batter in the past decade.

Talking highly of Virat, who amassed over 14,000 ODI runs and still looks strong thanks to redefined fitness levels, Dhoni said Kohli was also hungry for more since he emerged (on the international scene). Dhoni, who captained Kohli for over eight years, saw him grow into a master chaser and is not surprised by that. But what happens when both meet outside of the cricket field? Dhoni details.

Advertisment

Also read | IPL 2025: ‘He has a great cricketing mind; thinks about his teammates,’ Shubman Gill receives highest praise

“Between me and Virat, right from the start, he was someone who wanted to contribute. He was never happy with a 40 or a 60; he wanted to score a 100 and be not out till the end. 

“So, that hunger was there right from the start. The way he improved his batting and his will to perform are what kept him going. He raised his fitness levels and was always there on the field. 

Advertisment

“So he was always like that. He would come and talk, 'What I could have done now? I could have done this", Dhoni said in his interview with JioHotstar.

No captaincy burden helps us spend more time together

For the longest time in this competition history, Dhoni and Kohli led their respective IPL teams; however, since both are now relieved of their captaincy duties, Dhoni said it gives them more time to meet and talk before the game.

Also read | IPL 2025 | 'I have to adapt and stay relevant', says Dhoni

“We had a lot of conversations, and that opened us up. Again, I gave him an honest opinion. Things like 'You could have done this, delayed it by an over'. Or 'this was a risk that you had to take'. Just putting in the point and that's how the relationship grew. 

“It was more like a captain and a newcomer at that point in time, but once you keep interacting, you become friends. But I still feel we have that line in the middle – about the senior and a junior – although still friends. We have that companionship now that both of us are not captains. Which means that we can have more time between us before the toss,” MS continued. 

(With inputs from agencies)