MS Dhoni, known by many as ‘Captain Cool,’ isn’t always that cool. Current Chennai Super Kings (CSK) batting coach Michael Hussey has revealed that the legendary wicketkeeper wasn’t amused by him after he provided Dhoni with last-minute input in the CSK vs. SRH (Sunrisers Hyderabad) match in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2018 Qualifier 1.
Michael Hussey’s late input
Hussey told Dhoni how to play Rashid Khan’s googly when he was entering the field. Entering the middle with CSK 24/3 in 3.4 overs and chasing 140, Dhoni took his time.
“The night before the big game, the analyst sends me through this split screen of Rashid Khan. And it’s basically when he bowls his wrong’uns (googly), he runs in with his fingers together, and when he bowls his leggy, his fingers are apart. ‘Ooh, this is good.’ But this is the night before the game. So, I’m sitting on thinking, do I send this out to the batters, or do I not? I sat looking at it for an hour because you don’t want to put too much stuff on guys’ heads the night before the game. But I’m sitting on this and thought I’ll never forgive myself if I didn’t send this through, and I sent it to the batting group. I said, for what it’s worth, you might want to use it or just ignore it if you don’t,” Hussey said on the BackChat podcast.
MS Dhoni unhappy with CSK batting coach’s advice
By the time Rashid came to bowl, the former CSK captain had played 16 balls. He took a single off the first ball he faced, and then Rashid clean bowled him off a googly. Hussey’s last-minute suggestion played on Dhoni‘s mind and changed his method. This cost him dearly.
“We were like four down for nothing, and Dhoni’s in with Faf (du Plessis) at the other. Rashid Khan comes in on the first ball and bowls the wrong’un (googly). Dhoni goes for the cover drive, hitting against the spin, bowled. He comes in and looks me straight in the eye, and he goes, ‘I’ll bat my own f***ing way, thanks,’ and sits down next to me. Oh, coaching career, done!” Hussey added.
All good between Dhoni & Hussey
CSK went on to win the match by the barest of margins (2 wickets and 5 balls to spare). After the match, Dhoni came to Hussey and told him that it wasn’t his information that was the problem but when he gave. One needs time to make changes to their game, and by springing it on him at the end, he did him more harm than good.
“Dhoni’s a great guy, and he came up after the game and said, ‘The information was great, but I needed more time and a couple of net sessions to process it’,” Hussey concluded.
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