MS Dhoni and Ravichandran Ashwin have shared a strong bond over the years, and the duo have enjoyed playing against each other.
MS Dhoni and Ravichandran Ashwin have shared a strong bond over the years, and the duo have enjoyed playing against each other. Under Dhoni, Ashwin enjoyed playing and had ample success for both India and Chennai Super Kings (CSK).
Dhoni’s tips from behind the wickets were nothing less than gold for Ashwin, who spun his magic and won numerous games for his team. Ashwin has often credited Dhoni for backing him and giving him the confidence to perform under pressure, helping India and CSK immensely.
In white-ball cricket, Ashwin’s major success came under MS Dhoni and did well in almost every ICC and Asian tournament across formats. Ashwin was the leader of the spin department under Dhoni’s leadership and was never shy of doing experiments since he had the backing of the captain himself.
Ashwin’s decline as the white-ball bowler came once Dhoni stepped down as captain in India and the separation from Chennai Super Kings’ squad in IPL. Still, at his peak, he was one of the finest white-ball bowlers India have ever produced, and others learnt a lot from Ashwin’s craft.
On Sportstar, Ravichandran Ashwin narrated an incident from the Champions League when MS Dhoni’s confidence helped him grow. This story sums up the way Dhoni trusted Ashwin, who didn’t disappoint and stood up for the team most of the time under MS Dhoni.
“We were playing Victoria Bushrangers, the game went to Super over, I raised my hand to bowl but conceded 22 runs & lost the game, after the match, Dhoni just told one thing ‘you have variations, should have backed that’ – then he trusted me in next game in 17th over, I got 2 wickets & ended as player of the tournament.”
MS Dhoni’s style of captaining is unique and well known, for once he identifies a talent, he gives them as many opportunities as possible and backs them like anything. Be it Ravichandran Ashwin, Virat Kohli, or Rohit Sharma, Dhoni has often saved their careers, for which many players have credited him.
His vision was always broad; he tried to take Indian cricket forward with the best talents available. Many might not like his way of leading, but Dhoni was always a step ahead, and most of his decisions were ultimately proved to be true.
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