MS Dhoni: The Master Finisher's Total IPL Runs

The title of “Legend” fits MS Dhoni perfectly. This is because of what he has achieved in the game of cricket.

The keeper-batter holds the same stature as that of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo in football. The 42-year-old enjoys a massive fan following wherever he goes and is considered one of the biggest crowd-pullers in India. There of chants of “Dhoni Dhoni” whenever he’s on the field, which speaks a lot about his caliber as a player.

This all is because MS Dhoni has been an incredible servant for his nation in the game of cricket. He is rated as the best player to have captained the Indian Cricket Team as he made Men in Blue a dominant force in World cricket. While captains these days are struggling to win even one ICC trophy, Dhoni during his captaincy tenure won all the trophies affiliated with white-ball, guiding India to the T20 World Cup 2007, Cricket World Cup 2011, and Champions Trophy 2013 wins. These successes are not only attributed to his captaincy skills, but also leading from the front and helping India register some of the most famous victories.

MS Dhoni’s greatness, however, is not only limited to international cricket. The keeper-batter has had a similar impact in the Indian Premier League (IPL) as well. 

Captaining Chennai Super Kings in the tournament, he has been nothing short of exceptional. The former India skipper of the most successful leader in the team and has won five titles. While many know him for his leadership skills, some are not aware that he has performed equally well with the bat for his team. In this piece, we will take a look at MS Dhoni’s total runs in the IPL.

MS Dhoni's total runs in IPL history 

Despite batting down the order for most of his career, MS Dhoni is arguably one of the best batters to have played in the IPL. Touted as the greatest finisher in the game, the keeper-batter has won many games for his team from impossible situations, playing some blinders.

MS Dhoni’s ability to finish the innings on high has been one of the main highlights of his career over the years. But what has been even more impressive is his unique skill to handle the pressure and stay calm. This has been evident when his team has lost early wickets in the match and he has bailed the team out of trouble.

In his career spanning 17 years in the IPL, MS Dhoni has played for two franchises. He has been an internal part of the Chennai Super Kings but had to shift bases to the Rising Pune Super Giants team for two seasons in 2016 and 2017 when CSK was banned from the league. 

MS Dhoni's total runs in IPL career 

MS Dhoni is among the players who have mustered over 5000 runs in the league, with 5119 runs in 253 matches at the time of writing. The former Chennai Super Kings (CSK) skipper has an average of 39 in the league to go with a 136.32 strike rate in his career spanning 17 years. He has also scored 24 half-centuries. 

MS Dhoni’s best season in the IPL came during the 2013 edition. The keeper-batter scored 461 runs at an average of around 42. He slammed four half-centuries as well and took his team to the final, where he scored an unbeaten 63 runs. However, despite his efforts, his team lost. In that season, he slammed four fifties.

MS Dhoni’s worst season with the bat came during the IPL 2021 and 2023. He didn’t get much opportunity to bat which was why he didn’t score. In 2021, he amassed 114 runs whereas in 2023, he mustered just 104 runs. However, it didn’t cost the team as in both seasons, Chennai Super Kings emerged victorious. 

Ms Dhoni’s runs in death over in IPL