Roar Of The Lion: MS Dhoni Narrates Story Of CSK Rise, Fall And Comeback

The much-awaited 'Roar of the Lion', MS Dhoni's five-part documentary-drama series, was released on Wednesday (March 20). MS Dhoni narrates the story of Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Chennai Super Kings in five episodes of about 20-minute each. Directed by Kabir Khan, 'Roar of the Lion' opens with MS Dhoni talking about CSK's suspension getting over ahead of IPL 2018. MS Dhoni reveals that CSK's third IPL title was won only for the fans who believed in the team against all odds. CSK came back with a tagline, 'Thirumbi vandhutenu sollu', that translates to 'tell them we are back' and ended up winning the tournament.

What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger.
Watch #RoarOfTheLion, now streaming on #HotstarSpecials. https://t.co/mKn2EydLNG pic.twitter.com/IvzhHRahxc

— Hotstar Specials (@HotstarSpecials) March 20, 2019

Talking further about his collaboration with CSK, Dhoni says that it was like an "arranged marriage" as he did not choose his IPL team. The serial was launched on Hotstar.

Dhoni then reveals that 2013 was the darkest phase of his professional career. CSK was engulfed in the spot-fixing controversy and the franchise was then suspended for two years by the Lodha Committee in 2015.

Team owner N Srinivasan's son-in-law Gurunath Meiyappan was accused of spot-fixing. Dhoni clarifies that Gurunath Meiyappan was not the owner but the owner's son-in-law. Dhoni states that the team did deserve punishment but the quantum was too harsh. 

Other prominent CSK players Suresh Raina, Ravindra Jadeja, Shane Watson, Mohit Sharma and coaches Mathew Hayden and Michael Hussey also make appearances in the documentary that completely belongs to MS Dhoni.

Then talking about the comeback, Dhoni reveals how CSK were labelled "Dads' Army" in 2018 as the average age of players was 33-34 years. "What was important was that we should have the confidence to live up to the expectations of our owners and fans," says Dhoni.

In the closing credits of episode one, you can see Dhoni in tears while talking about the team's comeback in an internal meeting. 

The 37-year-old ends the conversation by saying "performance is not guaranteed but the effort is."

The IPL 2019 is set to begin on March 23 and defending champions Chennai Super Kings will take on Royal Challengers Bangalore in the tournament opener.

Topics mentioned in this article

Chennai Super Kings MS Dhoni IPL 2019 Cricket