‘I thought his captaincy was…’: Captain MS Dhoni's leadership reviewed after mixed results in first two matches
Michael Clarke gave his verdict on MS Dhoni's captaincy as CSK bounced back against LSG after big defeat after big defeat vs KKR.
Legendary Australia skipper Michael Clarke heaped praise on legendary Chennai Super Kings wicketkeeper batter Mahendra Singh Dhoni after he led his team to win over Lucknow Super Giants. Dhoni, who has been reinstated as CSK skipper after Ruturaj Gaikwad was ruled out for the rest of the season, helped his team snap a five-match losing streak on Monday. The 43-year-old turned back the clock and smashed an unbeaten 25 runs off 11 balls as he again perfectioned the finisher's role.
He entered the middle in the 16th over things that were slipping from CSK's reach, but he provided a much-needed boost to pin LSG down.
Clarke was highly impressed with Dhoni's wicketkeeping and rates him still the best in the world in that department. The veteran glovesman inflicted a stumping and produced a brilliant run out to put LSG under pressure at the fag end of their innings.
“It's always loud when MS Dhoni's in town. Look, his keeping does not surprise me. I've said it before, in my opinion, he's still the best wicketkeeper in the world. It's phenomenal how consistent he's been over a long period of time. I thought his captaincy was spot on tonight as well, the way he used both spinners through the middle, got through overs quick, built some pressure,” said Clarke on Star Sports.
Dhoni and Shivam Dube, who struck 43* from 37 deliveries, shared an unbeaten 57-run stand to help CSK emerge triumphant in the final over with three balls to spare.
“Best thing that happened was MS Dhoni's captaincy”
The five-time IPL-winning captain was back to his best in his tactical decisions after an off-day as skipper against KKR. He managed his spinners well, but LSG failed to pick the momentum, and there were 20 runs below par score.
Clarke lavished massive praise on Dhoni's captaincy for his bowling changes as he assessed the conditions to control the game.
“The best thing that happened tonight was MS Dhoni's captaincy. It was phenomenal. He read the situation, he adjusted to the conditions, he bowled his spinners in tandem, exactly like MS Dhoni has done his entire career. He got them on, they rushed through the overs, they changed the pace of the game, they used the surface, they picked up wickets. I just think his experience out there on the field was defining tonight as captain,” he added.
