Lungi Ngidi, like any other Chennai Super Kings player, was left pretty much in awe of MS Dhoni upon his arrival to the CSK camp. Ngidi, who made his IPL debut in 2018 under Dhoni, revealed how he was blown away by his captain's aura, one that literally gave him goosebumps. Eager to play under 'Captain Cool' for a year, Ngidi is hoping for a memorable season in the IPL 2021 starting April 9.
"When I first arrived at Chennai, you'd walk out and you'd hear the crows chant his name, you would get goosebumps and they're not even talking about you. He is massive for cricket, massive for Chennai. Like everyone says, Captain Cool," Ngidi told ESPNCricinfo.
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Ngidi picked up 11 wickets from seven matches in 2018 before opting out of IPL 2019 due to a side strain. Last year, upon his return to the side, the South Africa quick played four games and picked up nine wickets. Of the many qualities of Dhoni, the one feature that stands out for Ngidi is the CSK skipper's consistency… with almost everything he does.
"He's been very consistent; that's the one thing I was amazed with the most… his consistency and how he carries himself, behaves as a captain. For me, that was one of the most amazing things. Never showing too much emotion but when you'd need to get a bit of a pick-up talk from the captain, he'd give it to you. Very amazing man and very happy to be playing under him," Ngidi added.
{{/usCountry}}"He's been very consistent; that's the one thing I was amazed with the most… his consistency and how he carries himself, behaves as a captain. For me, that was one of the most amazing things. Never showing too much emotion but when you'd need to get a bit of a pick-up talk from the captain, he'd give it to you. Very amazing man and very happy to be playing under him," Ngidi added.
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At the IPL 2021 auction, CSK acquired the services of Moeen Ali, Krishnappa Gowtham, Cheteshwar Pujara, M Harisankar Reddy, K Bhagath Varma and C Hari Nishanth, and Ngidi is looking forward to working with the team's newest recruits.
"The combination is going to be interesting to see. Who plays, who misses out but the coaching staff and the captain get along very well and they've always got plans to fix things. So, I'm really excited to see how the guys are going to get it this year," the fast bowler said.