Fans are not thrilled with MS Dhoni’s decision to decline a single to Daryl Mitchell in the final over of the CSK innings.
Even the best finishers occasionally make mistakes, and MS Dhoni is perhaps the finest of all time. It was just that last night as the Chennai Super Kings superstar was batting in the direction towards the end of the innings. With four balls remaining in the last over against Arshdeep Singh, Dhoni—who has been brilliant with the bat in the IPL 2024—surprisingly denied his partner Daryl Mitchell a single.
Dhoni hit the second delivery of the over, smashed by Arshdeep, to sweeper cover in the deep, but he did not run. Mitchell, in meantime, was so excited that he hurried to the non-striker’s end, tapped the crease, and returned without incident. In theory, Mitchell and Dhoni might have given CSK two more runs if they had ran. Surprisingly enough, it’s probable that Dhoni was unsure about his partner’s abilities. To make matters worse, a slow-motion replay showed Dhoni screaming at Mitchell to return quickly.Surprisingly enough, it’s probable that Dhoni was unsure about his partner’s abilities. To make matters worse, a slow-motion replay showed Dhoni screaming at Mitchell to return quickly.
The Chepauk audience went crazy as usual as Dhoni’s act smacked the following two balls for a four and a six. Fans of X, however, were not happy to see Dhoni refuse a single to a player of Mitchell’s caliber. Mitchell, the New Zealand all-rounder, came out to bat at number eight, and everyone who has followed cricket carefully knows what he is capable of. Fans were shocked that Dhoni, at 42, followed his gut more than Mitchell’s when he nearly caused India an additional heartache in the World Cup quarter final last year. CSK concluded with 162/7, a score that was easily chased down by Punjab Kings by seven wickets. Dhoni was finally run out off the final ball of the innings which was his first dismissal of the season.
Dhoni’s unwillingness to accept singles in order to put his partner on strike is not something new. While a tailender was usually his companion in these earlier incidents, he memorably did the same to Ambati Rayudu in 2014. India fell to England in the Twenty20 after Dhoni’s strategy failed. Dhoni dismissed Rayudu with two balls remaining and then failed to clear the boundary with the final delivery, leaving five required off of two. It was among the first times that Dhoni had missed the knockout punch. The question of whether Dhoni’s desire for the limelight to have completed the game himself was selfish or the result of excessive self-confidence was discussed back then. And now, ten years later, people are using the term “selfish” to address the situation.
Mitchell is an excellent all-around player with powerful punches.
It’s pretty puzzling that Dhoni refrained from initiating a strike, especially against Mitchell. The coach of CSK and a former captain of New Zealand, Stephen Fleming, is obviously well aware of Mitchell’s big-hitting ability. With a strike rate of 138 in Twenty20 Internationals, the all-round player has amassed seven half-centuries for his country, New Zealand. Heck, he had just made a half-century in CSK’s last match against Sunrisers Hyderabad, which Chennai comfortably won by 78 runs. His innings included 52 off 32 balls with seven fours and a six.
Another perplexing choice was to rank Mitchell, at No. 8, first, after Moeen Ali, Sameer Rizvi, and Ravindra Jadeja, at 4. He was to be followed only by Mustafizur Rahman, Deepak Chahar, Richard Gleeson, and Shardul Thakur. To be honest, only CSK and management know for sure what led to this decision, but be assured that it was, to put it mildly, unexpected.
Source – hindustantimes
