Dhoni, the Pied Piper of Chennai
RCB captain Kohli says the CSK skipper knows what he wants out of his team & it is easy to be overawed by his fan following
CHENNAI:THIS city can’t get enough of their ‘Thala’. He seems to be omnipresent. A mere chance to see him practice can draw a 12000strong crowd to the MA Chidambaram stadium. A re-release of his biopic can still draw fans to theatres here, three years after the film was originally released.
MS Dhoni is the name that never ceases to give to the Chennai Super Kings fans. Not after their team was banned for two years following a spot-fixing controversy or after they had to move out of Chennai after just one match in 2018 following protests over Cauvery water dispute. Brand Dhoni has stayed strong as ever, if not grown in stature.
On Saturday, Indian cricket’s poster boy Virat Kohli would also be on the field leading Royal Challengers Bangalore, but it is anybody’s guess for whom the biggest cheer would be reserved in the opening match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2019.
“Every team that comes to Chennai is considered underdogs. They have done so well at home and MS knows what exactly he wants out of his team here and we all are aware of that. It’s very easy to be overawed by the support that CSK’S going to get, but we have to back our balance and skill,” RCB captain Kohli said on the eve of the match.
Kohli, for all his glorious run, has not yet been able to lay his hands on the IPL trophy. And analysing the man he often leans on for advice in international games may help him solve the code.
In 2018, with his international form dwindling, Dhoni found relief in the IPL. He scored 455 runs in 16 matches, but more importantly, 252 off those runs came between the 16th and 20th overs. His performance in the death overs was one of the crucial factors in CSK’S victory march.
If Dhoni was fabulous, so were Shane Watson and Ambati Rayudu at the top. Add Faf du Plessis, Suresh Raina and Kedar Jadhav to the mix and CSK’S batting looks formidable. Dubbed the ‘dad’s army’ last season, the Dhoni-led CSK backed their philosophy of sticking to the same set of players and scooped their third IPL title. There were eight different Man of Match winners in their team last year. There has not been much change to the line-up this year and it would not be a problem for the players to regroup soon. With the impending World Cup likely to alter team combination by the fourth week of April, getting close to the playoffs early will be key.
CSK got a big jolt with South African pacer Lungi Ngidi ruled out with a side strain before the tournament even began. “There are some players who are little bit special and Ngidi is one of them,” CSK coach Stephen Fleming said. Apart from that du Plessis, Imran Tahir and Mitchell Santner arrived on Friday but will be available for selection, according to the former Kiwi captain. If the trio is not able to get match ready, a lot will depend on the Indian players. With a pitch that is expected to be on the slower side, spinners might have the upper hand. Ravindra Jadeja, Harbhajan Singh and Karn Sharma will be three options to choose from if Tahir does not make the cut.
No matter the venue or the players, it is Dhoni’s ability to dig deep into available resources and eke out a win that stands out. With a Man of the Series award in ODI series in Australia in January, Dhoni would feel confident. And the vociferous crowd would only add to his strength.
Unlike CSK, RCB is missing no one due to injury though two key players, Aussies Marcus Stoinis and Nathan Coulter-nile, will join the team in April as they are playing ODIS against Pakistan.
For RCB, the real concern lies in failing to look beyond Kohli and AB de Villiers. They are among the most feared batsmen in the world and yet their combined effort has not resulted in an IPL triumph. It’s the third cog in the wheel that RCB is looking for. Shimron Hetmyer is an exciting talent from the Caribbean and a lot would ride on him if RCB are to come out of their over-dependence on Kohli and De Villiers.
Kohli is betting on the Indian talent. “We will showcase them tomorrow. These players have shone in the domestic circuit,” he said. He must be referring to allrounders Shivam Dube and Washington Sundar and pacer Mohammed Siraj.
“We are going to do our job like always. Ultimately its about wanting something very badly,” Kohli said.