MS Dhoni played a crucial role with the bat and gloves for CSK against DC. (Source: PTI)Mahendra Singh Dhoni is incredibly quick behind the stumps and examples of that have been well documented. Be it the international arena or the IPL cricket, Dhoni is an asset to have behind the stumps to inflict dismissals through his lightning quick skills. He credits playing with tennis ball cricket as the technical factor to achieve that skill.
“I think it’s something that’s come from tennis ball cricket. But you still have to do the basics and graduate to that level. If you want to keep like that you can make mistakes; so I still think basics are most important.”
Despite concerns over his fitness during the ongoing IPL, whenever Dhoni has taken the field, he has been in pulsating touch. On Wednesday, he scored 44 runs from 22 balls to power CSK to 179/4. Later, he had two stumpings and a catch with CSK defending their total successfully for a 80-run win.
Asked about his power-packed knock, Dhoni said he had spent enough time on the wicket to understand the bowling variations and unleash his game towards the end.
“Watch the ball, hit the ball. You’ve spent time, you know the variations. By the 20th over you’re almost ready and you swing at everything,” Dhoni said when asked about his last-over exploits. “It’s easier for somebody who has played 10-15 deliveries than someone who has just come in.”
MS said the conditions actually favoured them though they lost the toss.
“We knew there wouldn’t be much dew. What we’ve seen is if there’s no dew, there’s assistance for spinners. But when we started, Bhajju pa (Harbhajan Singh) didn’t get any turn. But as they started losing wickets, it started spinning, it started turning. Cricket is such a game,” he said after the 80-run win over Delhi Capitals.
