Baffled by some of the tactics of Chennai Super Kings in their clash against Royal Challengers Bengaluru, former Australia all-rounder Shane Watson said he does not understand why MS Dhoni continues to bat lower down the order. CSK suffered a heavy 50-run defeat while chasing a stiff 197-run target and Watson also felt that skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad should have opened the innings. Dhoni came to bat at number nine as Ravichandran Ashwin was sent ahead of him. He smashed the RCB bowlers all around the park for an unbeaten 30 off 16 balls but the effort went in vain as it came too late. The match was as good as over before Dhoni came to the crease.
“This is exactly what CSK fans come to see — 30 off 16 deliveries from Dhoni. I would have absolutely loved to see him come up the order. In my opinion, he should have batted ahead of Ashwin,” Watson, who is a JioStar expert, said.
“Given the game situation, Dhoni could have played like this for another 15 balls. Over the last couple of years, he has consistently shown that he’s still batting beautifully. I truly believe he should be promoted up the order so we can see the full extent of his skills. ” However, this is not a new phenomena as Dhoni, after having retired from the game, he had batted lower down the order even in the previous edition.
The top and middle order of the CSK crumbled as skipper Gaikwad endured four-ball-duck batting at number three on Friday night.
“It was disappointing to see certain decisions, like Rahul Tripathi opening the batting. Ruturaj Gaikwad is a quality opener, yet he had to come in later. Even one of the shots Ruturaj played, where he gave himself room against Hazlewood, was uncharacteristic,” Watson said.
“Normally, he stands still and reacts, but this showed he was under pressure. Deepak Hooda, at the moment, just isn’t up to it; he played each ball as if he was trying to survive.
“Batting Sam Curran at No. 5 was also questionable. I see him as more of a No. 7 batter. Right now, CSK hasn’t got their combinations right, and they need to make a few adjustments. If they persist with this batting line-up, they risk being exposed.” Both Watson and Aakash Chopra hailed Dhoni’s keping skills even at the age of 43.
“From a wicket-keeping perspective, he’s still as sharp as ever — whipping the bails off in an instant. That tells me his game is in great shape, and he’s as well-prepared as he possibly can be,” Watson said.
“If CSK had sent him in earlier, they would have had a better chance of crossing the line. Of course, the crowd absolutely loved what he did tonight (Friday), but if he had come in sooner, CSK might have had a stronger shot at victory.” Chopra explained what sets Dhoni apart.
“He’s simply remarkable. The fastest hands in the game — when we talk about speed, the definition is now ‘fast, faster, MS Dhoni.’ We always say, ‘Don’t try this at home’ because what he does is truly unique.” “Fundamentally, in fielding, the hands naturally move backward upon receiving the ball to absorb impact. Otherwise, the ball spills out due to the hardness of the hands. But Dhoni defies this logic. His hands move in just one direction — toward the stumps. There’s only one player in the world who can execute that kind of stumping with such precision, and that’s MS Dhoni,” Chopra said.
CSK have won one and lost one match so far and will next take on struggling Rajasthan Royals on Sunday in Guwahati.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
