IPL 2021: MS Dhoni should play at No.4 once CSK qualify for playoffs, says Gautam Gambhir

Former Indian cricketer Gautam Gambhir believes that veteran wicketkeeper-batsman MS Dhoni who is the captain of Chennai Super Kings (CSK), should be batting at No.4 after the franchise qualifies for the playoffs of IPL 2021. Dhoni has been seen coming down the order for the Chennai-based franchise in the UAE leg of the ongoing edition so far. The veteran ensured a tidy finish to proceedings in CSK’s triumph against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) on Friday, helping the team maintain their unbeaten run in the UAE.

“MS Dhoni should bat at No.4 once CSK qualifies for the playoffs, irrespective of whether you are chasing or batting first so that you are able to spend time in the middle. I will want to see that, hopefully it happens. The best thing about a captain is that it is his own wish, he can bat anywhere he wants. Your No.3 and No.4 will not always score runs. You need to bat a little more. The more runs you score, it will keep getting easier,” said Gambhir on Star Sports.

“You will qualify for the playoffs but it should not happen that the responsibility falls on you, you lose early wickets and you have to come and score runs,” he added.

“Our players have understood their roles and responsibilities”

Dhoni was full of praise for his players following CSK’s triumph against RCB in a clash which is termed as the ‘Southern Derby’.

“We were worried about the dew and we saw that last season. They got off to a great start and after the eighth or ninth over, the pitch slowed down a bit. Jadeja’s spell was very crucial especially with the way Padikkal was batting from one end. I told Moeen that he would bowl from one end during drinks, but then I changed my mind. I decided Bravo should bowl because the more you delayed him, the more difficult it was given that he’d have to bowl four straight overs in these difficult conditions. Our players have worked hard and understood their roles and responsibilities,” said the veteran as quoted by Cricbuzz.

“All three grounds here are different. This one is the slowest of the lot. I felt the left-right combination here was important with the bat. We bat deep with a lot of lefties and all of them are good to bat at any position, which is why we pushed Raina and Rayudu down. Bravo is fit and executing them well. I call him my brother and we always have fights over whether he should bowl the slower ball. But now everyone knows that he has the slower ball, so I told him to bowl six different balls in an over,” he added.

“Virat was a very important wicket”

All-rounder Dwayne Bravo was named as the player of the match, following his game-changing performance with the ball.

“IPL is the toughest competition in the world. It works on some days and on some days it doesn’t. My pride and my love for this game keeps me going. Virat was a very important wicket and RCB are a big side. I just wanted to keep it simple. As I said, preparation is the key for me. I practice in the nets, keep myself healthy and use my experience to come up in these situations. That gets the batsmen thinking about where it will go,” said Bravo.