Chennai: Mahendra Singh Dhoni is lightning quick behind the stumps and the veteran wicket-keeper batsman said it is a skill which he has developed from tennis ball cricket.
Talking about his super quick stumpings, Dhoni said, “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.”
Skipper Dhoni has been in super form in the ongoing IPL and after sitting out for a couple of matches due to fever and a stiff back, he smashed an unbeaten 44 off 22 balls to power Chennai Super Kings to 179 against Delhi Capitals Wednesday night.
CSK were struggling in the beginning but thanks to Dhoni, CSK scored 20 runs from the last over bowled by Trent Boult with the stumper finishing off with two sixes off the final two balls.
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 to lead Chennai Super Kings to a match-winning total. “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,” he added.
Dhoni 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.
PTI
