Picture of auction sheet from 2008 breaks the internet, MS Dhoni's iconic winning bid from CSK mentioned

The inaugural Indian Premier League (IPL 2008) auction sheet which featured the former India and Chennai Super Kings Captain, MS Dhoni, went viral like wildfire, when the renowned auctioneer, Richard Madley shared one of the most cherished moments of his career. As a result, this triggered the nostalgic memories of one of the most iconic moments in IPL history.

Notably, on February 20, in 2008, the former World Champion went under the hammer. In that auction, Dhoni was successfully secured by one of the most popular IPL franchises, Chennai Super Kings (CSK), for an astonishing $.1.5 million. Fascinating enough, CSK had outbid another giant franchise Mumbai Indians (MI) to etch their name in one of the most historic moments in cricket history.

For the unversed, before the auction, Chennai had to face some backlash from the fans for not naming an icon player of the franchise, unlike other IPL teams. However, amid all the scepticism, they found ‘Captain Cool’ as their centre of success both in terms of leadership and grooming players in the times ahead to come. The result? Dhoni successfully led CSK to five IPL titles in the years gone by.

Similarly, the renowned auctioneer Richard Madley took a moment to describe the Dhoni bidding act as one of the most iconic of his career and in the history of cricket. Another aspect of how the moment happened is that the onus goes to the former Indian cricketer V.B. Chandrasekhar, who had identified the leadership potential of Dhoni in the long run and even overlooked the likes of Virender Sehwag. Consequently, this move meant that a grand legacy came into existence for Chennai Super Kings and elevated the already illustrious status of MS Dhoni in the franchise's iconic ‘Yellow jersey’.

Also Check: How much money has been spent at each IPL auction?

Richard Madley, who conducted the auction in 2008, had shared the picture of the "first-ever auction sheet". Details of Dhoni's purchase were written on that sheet alongside other star players like Shane Warne, Shoaib Akhtar, Adam Gilchrist, Muttiah Muralitharan, and Mahela Jayawardena.

Check out Richard Madley's viral post here:

In 2023, Dhoni played with a bruised knee but managed to inspire his side to win the title after beating defending champions Gujarat Titans in Ahmedabad. The Ranchi-born managed to play all 16 matches. He scored 104 runs in 12 innings at a strike rate of 182.46, hitting some trademark sixes to roll back the years.

CSK go into IPL 2024 auction with fourth-highest purse

Meanwhile, speaking of the upcoming mega auction for the team building for the IPL 2025 edition, Chennai Super Kings will enter the grand event with a purse worth INR 55 crore. As far as the IPL retentions are concerned, the IPL franchise retained five key players by spending INR 65 crore. These key players also include the stalwart MS Dhoni, along with other players like Ravindra Jadeja, Shivam Dube, Matheesha Pathirana and the CSK skipper, Ruturaj Gaikwad, respectively.

Also Check: IPL History: Most expensive players by teams and countries

Notably, the Governing Council of the IPL had increased the total budget for the teams for the mega auction. This time the total budget allotted for each IPL franchise is INR 120 crore, which will allow them to build the teams in a more strategic manner than ever before. The IPL mega auction is slated to take place on November 24 and 25, 2024, respectively, with Saudi Arabia’s Jeddah named as the new venue for the grand occasion.