Kolkata Knight Riders skipper Gautam Gambhir has shunned all the critics and defended MS Dhoni ahead of his team’s clash with Rising Pune Supergiant. MS Dhoni was under immense scrutiny after a few unsatisfying knocks in recent matches.
After his whirlwind knocks on Saturday against Gujarat Lions, Dhoni again looked to be struggling scoring just 7 runs from 10 balls on Monday against Mumbai Indians, The slow track at Wankhede Stadium pitch did assist him much. The critics were quick to lash out at him for inconsistency.
“Here (in India), we start criticising if someone has one or two bad matches. He (Dhoni) is a quality player and we all know what he has done for India and the IPL. It is an important game, and rather than thinking what he can do, I think what KKR will do is all that matters,” added Gambhir, who played crucial knocks under Dhoni’s captaincy in the finals of the 2007 World Twenty20 and the 2011 World Cup.
According to Gambhir, there is no such term as ‘specialist finisher’ in any team. He feels that whoever takes his team past the winning line is the real finisher.
“There is no one like a finisher or a starter. Ultimately, the one who scores the winning run is a finisher, irrespective of whether he’s an opening batsman or No 11. What matters is how much you are contributing. If you can win matches for your team, you are a finisher,” Gambhir told reporters ahead of KKR’s match against Rising Pune Supergiant at the MCA Stadium here.
KKR is set to meet an in-form Rising Pune Supergiant unit tonight. The Steve Smith led side made it three wins in three matches after their recent narrow victory over Mumbai Indians. Their other two wins have come against Royal Challengers Bangalore and Sunrisers Hyderabad. Gambhir is well aware of this fact and isn’t taking the upcoming match lightly.
“That is very good for the team because if everyone is contributing, it is a great sign for any team. And that is what we want in KKR as well. We don’t want to be dependent on one or two people; we want to be dependent on everyone. If everyone starts performing, starts chipping in, because in the T20 format, there will be players who would end up getting one or two important wickets and there will be people who will get 10-ball 20.
“So those teams are obviously far more dangerous than the teams who are dependent on one or two individuals because it’s not assured that one or two individuals are going to perform in every game, but there is far more assuredness of 11 individuals chipping in, in important situations. If Pune is doing that then it is a great sign for the team,” said Gambhir.