Even at the age of 41, MS Dhoni continues to be one of the biggest crowd-pullers in the IPL. One glance at the stands when Chennai Super Kings is playing is enough to confirm Dhoni's popularity which has not decreased one bit even after close to four years of his retirement from all international cricket. And it is not just yesteryear glory as far as Dhoni's cricketing credentials are concerned. The CSK captain started IPL 2013 with a bang. In the 10 balls that Dhoni has batted in the 16th edition of the league so far, he has scored 26 runs and hit three sixes and a four.
Dhoni still continues to be one of the best finishers in the league. Ask Lucknow Super Giants pacer Mark Wood. The current Purple Cap holder, who has taken 8 wickets in just two matches, was taken to the cleaners by Dhoni a couple of nights ago in front of his home crowd in Chennai. Coming in to bat with only five balls left, Dhoni hit back-to-back sixes off Wood and then perished while trying to attempt a third one.
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Not just his batting. His game-reading and captaincy skills are as fresh as they were a decade ago. His tactic of not using Ravindra Jadeja against LSG and bowling out Mitchell Santner and Moeen Ali, the bowler who did not bowl a single over in the tournament opener against GT, changed the course of the match in CSK's favour. Moeen ended up picking four wickets and Santner too did a great job as LSG choked despite getting off to a flier.
Dhoni's cricketing acumen, therefore, continues to be one of the most talked about things in the IPL. No wonder, former India pacer RP Singh said he would like 'beg' for Dhoni's 'unmatched ability to catch the pulse of a match' when he was asked to name three things he would like to beg, borrow, and steal from the legendary cricketer in a Jio Cinema programme.
{{/usCountry}}Dhoni's cricketing acumen, therefore, continues to be one of the most talked about things in the IPL. No wonder, former India pacer RP Singh said he would like 'beg' for Dhoni's 'unmatched ability to catch the pulse of a match' when he was asked to name three things he would like to beg, borrow, and steal from the legendary cricketer in a Jio Cinema programme.
{{/usCountry}}“I would beg Mahi to give me his unmatched ability to catch the pulse of a match,” said the former left-arm pacer who added that he would borrow the India captaincy if he had the opportunity to. But when it came to the question of stealing, unsurprisingly he eyed one of Dhoni’s priceless possessions. “There are so many things you can steal from him, but I would probably steal one of his bikes, the RX100,” Singh said.