During CSK’s practice game in Chennai, a large gathering of MS Dhoni-intoxicated fans swarmed the arena, cheering for their ‘Thala’ and crowding outside a glass-paneled gym room to cheer as he pulled down weight on a power rack. However, after 25 minutes of cheering for Dhoni, the fans started to chant ‘Ben Stokes’, which swelled around the arena like an aural wave. This was an endorsement from the Yellove faithful about CSK’s future direction, pointing towards England’s charismatic Ben Stokes. The team’s social media handles have already started billing Stokes as the ‘Chosen one’ with hit numbers from Tamil movies playing in the backdrop. Songs of Rajnikanth, which were usually reserved for Dhoni, were found in posts for Stokes. The team has had star-studded overseas players in the past, including the likes of Dwayne Bravo, Matthew Hayden, Mike Hussey, and Brendon McCullum, but none have had the sort of reception that Stokes has managed to pull off so far.

During CSK’s practice game in Chennai, a large gathering of MS Dhoni-intoxicated fans swarmed the arena, cheering for their ‘Thala’ and crowding outside a glass-paneled gym room to cheer as he pulled down weight on a power rack. However, after 25 minutes of cheering for Dhoni, the fans started to chant ‘Ben Stokes’, which swelled around the arena like an aural wave. This was an endorsement from the Yellove faithful about CSK’s future direction, pointing towards England’s charismatic Ben Stokes. The team’s social media handles have already started billing Stokes as the ‘Chosen one’ with hit numbers from Tamil movies playing in the backdrop. Songs of Rajnikanth, which were usually reserved for Dhoni, were found in posts for Stokes. The team has had star-studded overseas players in the past, including the likes of Dwayne Bravo, Matthew Hayden, Mike Hussey, and Brendon McCullum, but none have had the sort of reception that Stokes has managed to pull off so far.

The latest buzz on social media is the picture of Ravindra Jadeja and Ben Stokes donning the Chennai Super Kings jersey together. Fans couldn’t contain their excitement as they witnessed two of the best all-rounders in the cricket world playing for the same team in the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023. Jadeja has been a star player in the CSK roster, while Stokes was acquired during the auction ahead of the 16th edition of the T20 league.

The picture of the two players sitting together in a training session went viral on social media, with fans comparing the duo to football legends Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo playing for the same team. The Chennai Super Kings shared the picture on their official Twitter handle, setting the micro-blogging site on fire.

Some fans are even speculating that Stokes could be a potential captaincy candidate for the team, especially with MS Dhoni expected to leave the franchise in a season or two. Meanwhile, Chennai successfully acquired Stokes’ services at a staggering price of Rs. 16.25 Cr during the IPL 2023 auction, after engaging in a bidding war with PBKS for Curran.

If Dhoni decides to retire from the franchise after this season, Stokes could be given the responsibility, given his success as England’s Test captain. Apart from Stokes, CSK also bought Ajinkya Rahane at a base price of Rs. 50 lakh. Interestingly, Dhoni, Stokes, and Rahane had previously played together for the Rising Pune Supergiants in IPL 2017.