MS Dhoni Gets his timing right one last time
New Delhi Mar 24 PTI If Chennai Super Kings is a film then MS Dhoni is its screenplay writer director main protagonist with a fine producer in N Srinivasan who believed in his mans vision implicitlyBut after 14 years for the first time the word captain wont be associated with Dhoni as he relinquished leadership duties with a sporting entity which had become a part of his identityCSK CEO Kasi Viswanathan has told everyone in media that it was Dhonis own decision and one should respect itIt couldnt be more accurate as cricket historians curating stories on IPL and art of T20 captaincy may be a decade from now on will have two distinct eras — BD and AD — Before Dhoni and After DhoniThe only time one saw Dhoni with moistened eyes in a public gathering was in 2018 when CSK made a comeback in IPL Boy he was emotional and the connect was visible He is Chennais own Thala who can never go wrong He is a captain of their soul they believe he is Invictus Unconquerable and why not No IPL franchise has been a part of nine IPL finals in 12 editions Remember they were suspended twiceHis art of captaincy is based on two basic traits — common sense and instinct The common sense was about never making games of T20 cricket too complicated while setting a template and consistent set-up in orderThe instinct part came with a clear idea of which player can perform specific roles and what is it that he is looking in them A lot of guts and some amount of game sense He never relied on analytics long and winding team meetings team catalyst baseball coach as power hitter and fancy termsThats why he relied on tried and tested international players and customised a few home grown himself Whether its Dwayne Bravo or Faf du Plessis or Josh Hazlewood or the likes of Suresh Raina Ambati Rayudu Jadeja or Ruturaj Gaikwad they were picked based on specific roles that they could perform year after yearHe understood that Deepak Chahar can get wickets in Powerplay and Shardul Thakur is a utility man He understood Moeen Ali could hit sixes on slowish track and the fast off-breaks at times will be helpful If CSK was madness Dhoni was its methodHad Dhoni wanted to continue he would have done that even this year too and no one would have even botheredBut that exactly is where Dhoni is different The case of perfect foresightCSK management read N Srinivasan still wouldnt have mind had Dhoni been ready to lead the Canary Yellows for the 191st time in the league and not be concerned about his batting form which has been on the wane for at least six years nowBut thats what makes MSD special For him there is nothing more important that CSKs interest and the decision is taken from a more pragmatic space rather than an emotional oneThere are a few things that one needs to be crystal clear about even as the captaincy is handed over to Ravindra Jadeja who has never ever even captained Saurashtra at the Ranji levelDhoni is leaving captaincy but not for once relinquishing leadership role The designation will belong to Jadeja as he is groomed for the role but the brain and the baton will still be with the man from Jharkhand with salt and pepper sideburnsSo why did Dhoni decide to quit two days before CSKs first match when no one was complaining if he would lead the side for one more year Months shy of his 41st birthday may be he has realised that it is not possible to play IPL to IPL with nothing in between the 14 to 16 high intensity T20 games annuallyHis routine during the 2020 and 2021 IPL is to arrive in Chennai this time it was Surat at least six weeks prior to the commencement of IPL and do hard intense training with nets and fitnessHe must have realised that he might just not be in peak physical condition to play all games this time and hence the grooming part needs to start nowThe logic is simple if Dhoni isnt playing all games it is better they choose a different leaderThis natural progression of leadership would have featured Suresh Raina had he not lost form completely and hence the next most dependable lieutenant Jadeja is being entrusted with the duty with Dhoni still an active playerIn this season when Dhoni takes periodic breaks it is expected that Rayudu will keep wicketsThe 114 runs that he scored in 16 IPL games for CSK last season is an indicator that with no Raina and Rayudu also not getting any younger Dhoni during the upcoming season needs to look at optionsHe will be helping out Jadeja ease into the role He will be that Player-Manager with Manager taking precedence over PlayerIf sources are to be believed the CSK had sounded out a current young India star to be a part of dual captaincy structure alongside Dhoni but the talks didnt reach its conclusionThis time Dhoni will be taking a bit of backseat but even with Jadeja at the helm the steering will still very much be in Dhonis hands PTI KHS BS BS
New Delhi Mar 24 PTI If Chennai Super Kings is a film then MS Dhoni is its screenplay writer director main protagonist with a fine producer in N Srinivasan who believed in his mans vision implicitlyBut after 14 years for the first time the word captain wont be associated with Dhoni as he relinquished leadership duties with a sporting entity which had become a part of his identityCSK CEO Kasi Viswanathan has told everyone in media that it was Dhonis own decision and one should respect itIt couldnt be more accurate as cricket historians curating stories on IPL and art of T20 captaincy may be a decade from now on will have two distinct eras — BD and AD — Before Dhoni and After DhoniThe only time one saw Dhoni with moistened eyes in a public gathering was in 2018 when CSK made a comeback in IPL Boy he was emotional and the connect was visible He is Chennais own Thala who can never go wrong He is a captain of their soul they believe he is Invictus Unconquerable and why not No IPL franchise has been a part of nine IPL finals in 12 editions Remember they were suspended twiceHis art of captaincy is based on two basic traits — common sense and instinct The common sense was about never making games of T20 cricket too complicated while setting a template and consistent set-up in orderThe instinct part came with a clear idea of which player can perform specific roles and what is it that he is looking in them A lot of guts and some amount of game sense He never relied on analytics long and winding team meetings team catalyst baseball coach as power hitter and fancy termsThats why he relied on tried and tested international players and customised a few home grown himself Whether its Dwayne Bravo or Faf du Plessis or Josh Hazlewood or the likes of Suresh Raina Ambati Rayudu Jadeja or Ruturaj Gaikwad they were picked based on specific roles that they could perform year after yearHe understood that Deepak Chahar can get wickets in Powerplay and Shardul Thakur is a utility man He understood Moeen Ali could hit sixes on slowish track and the fast off-breaks at times will be helpful If CSK was madness Dhoni was its methodHad Dhoni wanted to continue he would have done that even this year too and no one would have even botheredBut that exactly is where Dhoni is different The case of perfect foresightCSK management read N Srinivasan still wouldnt have mind had Dhoni been ready to lead the Canary Yellows for the 191st time in the league and not be concerned about his batting form which has been on the wane for at least six years nowBut thats what makes MSD special For him there is nothing more important that CSKs interest and the decision is taken from a more pragmatic space rather than an emotional oneThere are a few things that one needs to be crystal clear about even as the captaincy is handed over to Ravindra Jadeja who has never ever even captained Saurashtra at the Ranji levelDhoni is leaving captaincy but not for once relinquishing leadership role The designation will belong to Jadeja as he is groomed for the role but the brain and the baton will still be with the man from Jharkhand with salt and pepper sideburnsSo why did Dhoni decide to quit two days before CSKs first match when no one was complaining if he would lead the side for one more year Months shy of his 41st birthday may be he has realised that it is not possible to play IPL to IPL with nothing in between the 14 to 16 high intensity T20 games annuallyHis routine during the 2020 and 2021 IPL is to arrive in Chennai this time it was Surat at least six weeks prior to the commencement of IPL and do hard intense training with nets and fitnessHe must have realised that he might just not be in peak physical condition to play all games this time and hence the grooming part needs to start nowThe logic is simple if Dhoni isnt playing all games it is better they choose a different leaderThis natural progression of leadership would have featured Suresh Raina had he not lost form completely and hence the next most dependable lieutenant Jadeja is being entrusted with the duty with Dhoni still an active playerIn this season when Dhoni takes periodic breaks it is expected that Rayudu will keep wicketsThe 114 runs that he scored in 16 IPL games for CSK last season is an indicator that with no Raina and Rayudu also not getting any younger Dhoni during the upcoming season needs to look at optionsHe will be helping out Jadeja ease into the role He will be that Player-Manager with Manager taking precedence over PlayerIf sources are to be believed the CSK had sounded out a current young India star to be a part of dual captaincy structure alongside Dhoni but the talks didnt reach its conclusionThis time Dhoni will be taking a bit of backseat but even with Jadeja at the helm the steering will still very much be in Dhonis hands PTI KHS BS BS
