CSK teammates enjoy team dinner after IPL 2018 triumph. (Source: Twitter)
Chennai Super Kings clinched their third title on their return to the tournament after a span of two years with MS Dhoni leading the charge of the team. The side defeated Sunrisers Hyderabad convincingly by 8 wickets in the final to win the title. Speaking to reporters, CSK spinner Harbhajan Singh praised Dhoni for his performance and said that he was his former self throughout the tournament. “He has been wonderful and it was good to see him batting up the order. He reminded me of the older version of Dhoni,” Singh was quoted as saying by Sportstar.
CSK faced criticism for packing the squad with players above the age of 35. But Singh defended the squad selection and said that age does not matter in a tournament such as IPL. “We make mistakes by saying that players are 30 or 35. My question is, so what? When people are 20-21, they make mistakes in the middle by not thinking wisely. Nonetheless, the people in 30s are experienced as they have gone through these stages in their career, so they know when to react and how to react in pressure situations. That’s where experience comes to play,” he said.
He further added that CSK proved that a side can win with experienced players. “With age, you know which shots to play and how to trap a batsman with the ball. Experience matters the most and you have seen that with Chennai Super Kings,” he said. Dhoni further went on to express disappoint about not playing too many games in Chennai, but added that he is happy with the positive results.
“It’s been a great outing for all of us. From the fans point of view, this is the best thing that has happened. They were waiting for CSK to come back and were very excited for the side. We didn’t play much in Chennai, that’s very unfortunate. Yet, the crowd went to Pune to support. They were excited. A big team coming into the league is always good and we have got perfect results,” he said.