The moment that Chennai Super Kings have been waiting for has finally arrived as Sanju Samson was seen interacting with MS Dhoni during the training camp ahead of the new IPL 2026 season on Thursday, March 19. Samson joined CSK ahead of the IPL 2026 season, in a trade that saw Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran move in the opposite direction to be a part of RR for the new campaign.

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After his heroics in the T20 World Cup 2026, where he scored 321 runs from five matches and emerged as the Player Of The Tournament, Samson arrived in Chennai on Thursday to link up with the squad after a much-needed rest. In the video that has gone viral now, Samson can be seen engaging in a light-hearted chat with Dhoni as both men were seen smiling. You can see the full video below:

This interaction got the CSK fans buzzing, who are already excited to see the Thala-Chettan connection on the field during the IPL 2026 season.

WHAT DID SAMSON SAY ABOUT PLAYING ALONGSIDE DHONI?

Samson said that he is excited about spending an entire IPL season alongside Dhoni and said that the legendary Indian captain has always had a positive influence on him.

“I’ve spoken to Mahi bhai a lot and have seen him on and off in the Indian team, but this will be the first time we’ll spend two months together, so there’s a lot of excitement,” Samson told PTI.

“Whenever he calls or speaks to me, there’s always a positive influence. But being with him in the same team for two months will definitely have its benefits, and just thinking about it makes me happy. Watching and learning from the way he approaches the game is something I see as a great opportunity,” Samson added.

CSK fans could see both men on the field together during CSK’s opening match of IPL 2026 against RR on March 30 in Guwahati.

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Former Pakistan captain Rashid Latif made a sweeping remark about pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi, saying the left-arm speedster doesn’t even warrant a place in the T20I playing XI owing to his poor form. Ever since the 2022 T20 World Cup, the 25-year-old has looked a pale shadow of his old self, leaking runs for fun across formats. The left-arm pacer had a T20 World Cup 2026 to forget and was even dropped for the group stage match against Namibia after leaking more than 20 runs in the two overs he bowled against India.

Recently, under Shaheen’s captaincy, Pakistan also lost the ODI series against Bangladesh, and the latest result saw several fans and pundits back home say the pacer is not the right fit for the ODI captaincy; rather, he should be handed the reins of the T20 team, replacing Salman Ali Agha.

However, Latif shut this notion down, saying Shaheen doesn’t even deserve a place in the playing XI, hence the attempt to push a narrative should be stopped as the speedster first needs to earn his place in the lineup.

“Yes, he should have been earlier, but now he doesn’t deserve a place in the T20I team. People are running a campaign to have him be the captain of the T20I team instead of ODIs. He doesn’t even deserve a place. Now, the time is over,” he added.

With the bat, Shaheen tried his best to help Pakistan win the series decider in Dhaka, but his 37-run knock was of no use as the visitors fell 11 runs short in the third and final ODI.

Shaheen will next be seen leading the Lahore Qalandars in the upcoming Pakistan Super League (PSL), scheduled to begin on March 26.