CSK's WhistlePodu Army silences Barmy Army as latter's birthday tweet for MS Dhoni makes fans furious

No matter the occasion or event, England’s Barmy Army has a tendency to share messages for non-England cricketers or teams, which irks the followers of other teams. On Thursday, a similar incident occurred when England cricket’s fan group uploaded a picture of former India captain MS Dhoni to wish him a happy birthday.

WhistlePodu Army, the IPL franchise Chennai Super Kings’ fan group, responded to Barmy Army in a way that was appropriate, as fans were utterly incensed at the image and the tweet’s description that Barmy Army had used. Dhoni turned 41 on Thursday, and thousands of people sent him birthday wishes on social media, including the Barmy Army.

Barmy Army posted a photo of Dhoni during the 2019 World Cup match against England when the former skipper could be seen leaving the field after being dismissed and making his way to the pavilion. “Happy Birthday MS, some amazing battles over the years,” they captioned the post as it irked the Indian fans and the post saw a brilliant reply coming from them.

They received a strong response from WhistlePodu Army – CSK Fan Club, who used a sequence of images from the 2013 Champions Trophy final, which India had won under Dhoni’s captaincy and leadership. “Thank you & Yellove on behalf of all Dhoni fans. We love the courtesy extended amidst these battles and the amazing memories like these which we cherish. #HappyBirthdayDhoni,” they wrote.

The Champions Trophy 2013 meant MS Dhoni’s third ICC Trophy win

The images showed Dhoni stumping Ian Bell and his over-the-top celebration after India defeated England by 5 runs in Birmingham, making him the first skipper to ever win three ICC trophies (the other two being the ODI World Cup and T20 World Cup). India finished the rain-affected game with 129/7, which Virat Kohli’s 43 helped them achieve. England was confined to 124/8, with two wickets each taken by Ravindra Jadeja, R Ashwin, and Ishant Sharma as India lifted the coveted cup.

Dhoni has been one of the finest Indian cricketers to have graced the sport. With numerous laurels and achievements to his name, the veteran announced his retirement in August 2020. He then went on to play a role in Team India as their mentor during the T20 World Cup, alongside continuing his association with the Chennai Super Kings as the captain in IPL.