IPL 2017:Steve Smith Opens Up About His Relationship With MS Dhoni

Apr 30, 2017 at 10:53 AM

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IPL 2017:Steve Smith Opens Up About His Relationship With MS Dhoni

Contrary to the early speculations, Steve Smith and Mahendra Singh Dhoni have gelled well in the ongoing season of the Indian Premier League. Under their new skipper, the Supergiant have done reasonably well, winning five of their opening nine games and are in contention to make it to the playoffs. Smith has looked comfortable in his role and Dhoni has also backed him.

After a poor inaugural season where Dhoni led the new-comers to a disappointing seventh-place finish in the eight team competition, the franchise stunned one and all by replacing the celebrated skipper with Smith before this season. The most decorated skipper in the history of Indian cricket, Dhoni is also one of the most successful skippers in the Indian Premier League. He led the now-suspended Chennai Super Kings to two Indian Premier League titles, two Champions League T20 title in addition to leading them to six Indian Premier League final appearances. However, the franchise, in an attempt to give the team a new look, took the huge call of sacking Dhoni.

As expected, the franchise received backlash for the harsh call and there were also speculations that Smith might face difficulty in leading the team. However, the Australia skipper has dismissed all the premonitions and has opened up on his relationship with his predecessor.

“It’s pretty chilled out with him. He has been fantastic and has had a few valuable contributions with the bat and he is hitting the ball really well. I think he will come back to great form and have a bigger impact by the end of this IPL. I’m really excited about the next couple of games,” he told iplt20.com after leading his team to a 61-run win over Royal Challengers Bangalore on Saturday (April 29).

Praising Dhoni for his incredible understanding of the game, Smith hoped of getting more help from the former India skipper in the coming matches.

“MS Dhoni has been fantastic as he knows the game incredibly well out here. As a wicket-keeper, it is nice to have someone out there who can look at the angles and get them right. He has done that well for us and I’m sure he will continue to make a big impact and help me and the rest of the boys and hopefully have more success in the rest of this tournament,” Smith said.

When asked whether Dhoni is the fastest stumper ever, he said:“He’s incredibly quick behind the stumps and his hands don’t go back at all, they just stay there and collect the ball. He has done that for a very long time now and has done it once or twice for us in this tournament so far and is doing a great job for the team.”

The Supergiant skipper also had a word of praise for opening batsman Rahul Tripathi who is currently the second highest run-getter for his team with 253 runs in seven innings with a best of 59 runs and strike rate of just over 150.

Rahul Tripathi has been playing incredibly well ever since he has gotten the opportunity. He plays his shots early on, he’s a stylish player and certainly a player to watch out for in the future. He has started off beautifully for us and I’m looking forward to seeing his progress in the years to come,” Smith said.

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