Australia vs India 2018/19: MS Dhoni On Verge Of Creating History In Australia
Jan 18, 2019 at 8:36 AM
MS Dhoni has started 2019 on a bang. After a year that saw him face criticism from all around, the former India skipper has looked in his usual self so far this year. He began the year with a fighting knock of 51 in the first ODI against Australia. But he had faced criticism for that innings too as he ended up facing 96 balls. But in the very next game, he rolled back the years with a scintillating match-winning display.
The 37-year old starred with both wicketkeeping gloves and bat as India beat Australia by 6 wickets to level the three-match series. He came to the crease when India were in a precarious position despite skipper Virat Kohli looking in ominous form at the other end. India needed 139 off 118 deliveries when Dhoni joined Kohli at the crease and there were apprehensions that the World Cup-winning skipper’s knack of using too many deliveries early on can hurt India.
However, Dhoni was in his elements and mastered the chase by scoring 55 off 54 balls. He also hit a six on the first ball of the last over when India needed seven before taking a single to complete the win. The innings was a tight slap on the critics who have not squandered a single chance to take a shot at Dhoni.
The World Cup-winning skipper is now standing on the verge of achieving a personal milestone. Dhoni looks set to become only the fourth Indian batsman after Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma to complete 1,000 ODI runs in Australia. The right-handed batsman is just 34 runs away from completing the milestone and will be joining an elite list of players if he manages to achieve the feat on Friday in the final third ODI between India and Australia. Dhoni currently has 966 runs in ODIs in Australia and averages a brilliant 43.90.