He remembered a game from IPL 2023 where he got out due to Dhoni’s strategical mastery.
There aren’t many players or captains like Mahendra Singh Dhoni in the modern game. His composed presence when pressure is at boiling point has more often than not flipped the script on the opposition. His ability to see through the opponents’ next move has been among the biggest strengths for Chennai Super Kings who clinched five Indian Premier League (IPL) titles.
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) all-rounder Venkatesh Iyer, having witnessed these abilities in the middle, is in awe of the former India captain. He remembered a game from IPL 2023 where he got out due to Dhoni’s strategical mastery.
“Dhoni took out a fielder from deep square leg and placed him at short third, slightly away from the spot where short third usually is. The (very) next ball, I hit straight into short third’s hands,” Venkatesh told ESPNCricinfo in an interview.
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Venkatesh was batting on nine and had scored two boundaries before hitting the ball straight to Ravindra Jadeja off Deepak Chahar’s bowling. Curious about how all things happened according to Dhoni’s plan, Venkatesh had a chat with him after the match. It revealed a detail he barely had thought about.
“Post the game I asked Dhoni why he placed that fielder in that spot and he had a proper answer for it. He was trying to understand the impact of the ball from my bat, the angles. His reading of angles is just out of the world, and he knew that if I hit this shot, it has to go in that direction, so he had a fielder put there. This is being proactive. This is real captaincy: understanding what a batter is doing,” he said.
Dhoni had relinquished CSK captaincy as it changed hands from Jadeja, back to him, and then to opening batter Ruturaj Gaikwad.
They will face defending champions KKR on April 11 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. The return leg of the teams is set to be played on May 7 at the Eden Gardens.
Venkatesh, who was integral to KKR’s third title win last year, was released by the franchise before the auction. But he was bought back for a massive price tag of INR 23.75 crore in the auction.
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