Few cricketers in the world possess the ability to spot talents and develop them like MS Dhoni. The likes of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli all played for Dhoni, but their rise to the peak of cricket, as they confess, may not have been possible without Dhoni. He supported Kohli during his early struggles and also recommended Rohit to open the innings to make the best use of his talent. But Kohli and Rohit are not the only ones benefiting from Dhoni’s cricketing acumen.

A Rising Star: Matheesha Pathirana

Many cricketers who have been mentored by Dhoni have found success at both, international and franchise, levels. Sri Lanka fast bowler Matheesha Pathirana’s story has been the same, but so different.

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Pathirana had extremely minimal exposure of cricket, as he was born into a musical family. Nevertheless, his potential was spotted by none other than Thala himself, who was impressed immediately.

CSK Breakthrough For Pathirana Under MS Dhoni

The next in line was an IPL contract from the Chennai Super Kings (CSK), who signed Pathirana as an uncapped overseas player for Rs 20 lakh, though as a replacement for injured Adam Milne.
Since then, Pathirana has been working under Dhoni’s guidance, even representing Sri Lanka 31 times till now.

A Father Figure in MS Dhoni

In a video uploaded by CSK, Pathirana’s parents revealed about Thala’s influence on their son’s life, who even regards the wicketkeeper as his father.

“No words for MS Dhoni. He is real God. How Matheesha respects his father. Like that, he respects Dhoni,” said Matheesha’s mother.

“In Sri Lanka, you are my father, in India it is MS Dhoni,” added his father.

“I treat MS Dhoni as my father figure because of what he has done for me in cricket. The support he has given me in cricket is very similar to what my father gave me at home,” said Matheesha.

IPL Performance and Stats of Pathirana

In 2023, Pathirana had a breakthrough season in the IPL, playing 12 matches and taking 19 wickets. In 2024, he maintained his good form, taking 13 wickets from six matches.

Overall, Pathirana has played 22 matches for CSK, taking 39 wickets at an economy rate of 7.88 and with a best bowling of 4/28.