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Chennai Super Kings (CSK) head coach Stephen Fleming hailed veteran batter MS Dhoni's remarkable stroke play in the death overs during the defending champions 20-run loss against the Delhi Capitals in the ongoing Indian Premier League 2024 season.
Dhoni (37*) set the fans back to 2011 as he pulled out some vintage shots from his arsenal, sending the crowd into a frenzy. The 42-year-old went on a scoring spree as he raced to 37* in a mere 16 deliveries. The crowd in Visakhapatnam saw four boundaries and three maximums coming off Dhoni's bat. While chasing 192, Dhoni struck 20 runs in the final overs as CSK endured a 20-run defeat in Visakhapatnam. Fleming hailed Dhoni's art with the bat as he finished CSK's chase in style, hitting a six on the final ball of the game to ensure that the five-time champions ended the day on a positive note. "It was beautiful, wasn't it? And even the one handed one, the one over mid-wicket, he has been playing incredibly well in pre-season. He's coming back from a quite serious operation, so he's rehabbing really well, but his batting has been superb. And that type of performance, it just gave us a bit of a positive vibe to the end of a tough day," Fleming said, as quoted from CSK's official website. Dhoni's onslaught wasn't sufficient to pull CSK across the finishing line. During the game, the veteran wicketkeeper also became the first player to complete 300 dismissals in the T20 format. Ravindra Jadeja forced out an edge from Prithvi Shaw and Dhoni didn't make a mistake behind the stumps as he held onto the ball to complete his 300th T20 dismissal. With 274 dismissals in T20 cricket, former Pakistan wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal is second on the list. The wicketkeeper who comes closest to Dhoni is former Pakistan cricketer Kamran Akmal, with 274 dismissals in T20 cricket. MS Dhoni will return to action for CSK in their next game against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) on Friday at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Telangana. (ANI)
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