New Delhi, September 10, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
For Jalandhar leg-spinner Kartik Chadha, getting a call to work with Chennai Super Kings during IPL 2025 was an experience he initially found difficult to believe. But it was an intra-squad match at Chepauk, where he dismissed Mahendra Singh Dhoni, that gave the youngster a major boost in confidence.
Kartik, who joined CSK as a net bowler, said sharing the dressing room with Dhoni and other established players was a significant moment in his young career.
“It was a very unreal moment when I got the call that we have seen you, and you should come and join us at CSK. It was very unreal at first. When I went there… obviously Dhoni bhai is such a big name. So it was a big deal to share the dressing room with him,” Kartik told IANS in an exclusive interaction.
The experience soon moved beyond simply training alongside senior players. Kartik featured in intra-squad matches and said his performances against high-level batters gradually convinced him that he belonged at that level.
“I bowled very well there, and that’s when I started believing that I belong there. My confidence only boosted thereafter; I thought, yes, I can do it,” he said.
One particular practice match remains firmly etched in his memory. Kartik claimed four wickets, including the prized dismissal of Dhoni.
“I remember we had an intra-squad match, and I took four wickets. I also bowled out Dhoni bhai. It was like a normal practice game, like a match simulation type, but I managed to bowl out Dhoni bhai there,” he recalled.
Kartik admitted he also took his share of punishment during the contest, but the Dhoni dismissal carried special significance.
“I was getting hit equally, but the joy of bowling Dhoni bhai out was different,” he said.
The CSK stint became an important part of Kartik’s development, giving him an opportunity to test his leg-spin against elite batters in a competitive environment. That experience has since helped him in the Sher-E-Punjab T20 League, where he represents Ludhiana Lions and has already dismissed India batter Shubman Gill.
His progress, however, has been repeatedly disrupted by injuries. He fractured a finger during last year’s Maharaja Ranjit Cup and suffered an ankle fracture and ligament injury a few months before the Sher-E-Punjab League.
“I had been facing a lot of issues with my fitness for a very long time because there was always some injury or the other. Last year, during the Maharaja Ranjit Cup, I fractured my finger, so it was a very tough time,” he said.
The ankle injury forced him to spend around one to one-and-a-half months on the sidelines at a time when he felt he was building good momentum.
“It was a very disturbing moment. There was a very good flow this time, but I got injured. So I was down for 1-1.5 months,” Kartik said.
He eventually worked his way back through rehabilitation, practice and competitive matches, rebuilding the momentum that had been interrupted.
“I did my best to recover from the ankle injury. After that, I had faith in myself that I could do it. But at that time, I felt this was not possible. But then when I came back, I played matches and practised. So that momentum started again. Then I came to Sher-E-Punjab. So I have been backing myself since then,” he said.
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