Former off-spinner of India, Harbhajan Singh was devastated to see MS Dhoni getting knocked out at no.9 during the IPL 2024 outing between Punjab Kings (PBKS) and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in Dharamsala on Sunday, 5th of May. MS Dhoni has had a topsy turvy IPL 2024 so far and even after relinquishing captaincy he can be seen guiding the bowlers & assisting the spinners.
CSK lost a good deal of their wickets before the second half of their innings as PBKS bowlers made a staggering comeback in the match . MS Dhoni despite being in good form, was sent to bat at no.9 as the Man in Yellow preferred the likes of Shardul Thakur and Mitchell Santner ahead of their former captain.
Harbhajan Singh furious on MS Dhoni
But later on, Harbhajan Singh rephrased that it was entirely Dhoni’s decision to bat no.9 because there wouldn’t be any single movement without the consent of the veteran wicketkeeper and batter. This is what he [Harbhajan] told on Star Sports:
“MS Dhoni shouldn’t play if he wants to bat at the number nine slot. It is better to include a fast bowler than him in the playing XI. He is the decision-maker and has let down his team by not coming out to bat. Nothing happens without his permission and I am not ready to accept that this decision to demote him was taken by someone else,”
Harbhajan Singh spat out harsh words for Dhoni as he saw him getting dismissed for a golden duck, even though he reserved himself for playing at no.9. Harbhajan claimed that the shot taken by Dhoni is not easily replicable and that’s exactly why he should have taken the responsibility.
Harshal Patel on his subdued celebration after dismissing MS Dhoni
MS Dhoni was left completely speechless by the slower delivery by Harshal Patel, knocking Dhoni’s off-stump. However, the latter did not celebrate exaggeratedly despite his outstanding delivery.
Harshal Patel explained his reason why his slow balls are much more effective:
“I have too much respect for him (Dhoni) to celebrate when I get him out. One of the advantages of playing a day game is that the square is quite rough. So the ball starts reversing. In my first over it was reversing. It’s all about the feel of that delivery (slower one). More you bowl the better you get. Most batters don’t pick it,” said Harshal.
Punjab Kings put a stop to Chennai’s progress to 167/9, the hosts were unable to chase down the given target and were dismissed at 138. Jadeja became the spotlight, having scored 43 off 26. And also pulling 3/20.