Playing for Chennai Super Kings is a dream for many players. England speedster and a T20 veteran of 102 matches, Richard Gleeson, has had that experience. Gleeson was part of the CSK dressing room in IPL 2024 after being named as a replacement for the injured Devon Conway.
Gleeson played two matches for the five-time champions Super Kings, both of which came against Punjab Kings, one at home and one away from it. He has been playing shorter-format cricket around the world. Recently, he was part of England’s Vitality Blast and played in the Lanka T10 Super League, where he was part of the winning team Hambantota Bangla Tigers.
In an exclusive interaction with India TV, Gleeson opened up about his experience in the CSK dressing room and also gave his thoughts on MS Dhoni‘s future in the Indian cash-rich league. “CSK’s dressing room is very relaxed. (It’s) Very free and easygoing. Players get a lot of backing. They are backed to do what they feel is right,” Gleeson said in an interaction with India TV on the sidelines of the recently-concluded Lanka T10 Super League.
He also shared what message he used to receive from the management and senior players like MS Dhoni. “The message that I got was to try and take pressure off and make things clear and simple. That was the message I got from Fleming. MS is great. He asks questions from you. He is very easygoing. He is a nice guy. He looks up to everybody. He is very down to earth,” Gleeson added.
He also gave his views on how long Dhoni will continue to play in the IPL. On being asked whether the Indian legend has told him anything about his future, the 37-year-old replied, “He has not discussed anything with me.”
“I think he will keep going as long as he can. He retired a long time ago but he can still do the job. That’s the main thing. He is still doing and hopefully, he can carry on,” Gleeson said.
Watch Richard Gleeson’s Exclusive Interview here: