IPL 2017: MS Dhoni, Ben Stokes Have Let The Pune Team Down: Sourav Ganguly

Apr 24, 2017 at 7:55 AM

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IPL 2017: MS Dhoni, Ben Stokes Have Let The Pune Team Down: Sourav Ganguly

Former India skipper Sourav Ganguly feels Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Ben Stokes have let Rising Pune Supergiant down by not delivering on the expectations in the ongoing season of the Indian Premier League.

A few days after expressing his doubt over Dhoni’s credentials as a batsman in Twenty20s, Ganguly heaped praise on the former India skipper for his match-winning knock against Sunrisers Hyderabad. The 35-year old batsman blasted 61* off just 34 balls including a last ball four to help his team win a thriller but prior to that he had looked like a pale shadow of his usual self. With just 61 runs in 5 matches at a poor striker-rate of 87.14, Dhoni was severely criticised for his performances before the knock against the defending champions silenced all the critics.

“It was a great knock typical Dhoni and that is why I keep on saying that he needs to bat at No.4, because when he gets to bat at No.4, like you saw that he was 10 off 13 deliveries yesterday but once he got in he just smashed those big sixes. It was a terrific knock yesterday and hopefully, he can continue for the Supergiant because they need him and the next two games will be very important for him. MS Dhoni is an automatic choice for India and he played superbly last night,” Ganguly told India Today.

Ganguly further said that the much-needed win against the Sunrisers has put Steve Smith’s men in contention for a playoff berth. After winning their season-opener against Mumbai Indians, the Pune-based outfit were looking destined to experience another poor season following three consecutive losses but they have managed to turn things around with two consecutive wins.

“At one stage we felt as if the game has gone away from the RPS team and their two wins back to back have actually brought them back in contention to qualify. You expect Dhoni to perform but you expect it to happen a lot more often. If you look at the last IPL there was one fifty (from MS Dhoni) for the Pune team and this season as well this is the first big knock he has played six games into the tournament,” he said.

Ganguly said that the team needs more of such match-winning knocks from Dhoni especially at a time when their hopes of making it to the playoffs are hanging by a thread. He further said that Dhoni along with England all-rounder Ben Stokes have let the team down big time.

Dhoni proved his worth with a match-winning knock against the Sunrisers but Stokes, who was the costliest player in this year’s auction, is yet to justify his huge price tag. In Supergiant’s fifth game against Royal Challengers Bangalore, Stokes delivered a Man of the Match performance, as he took three wickets, including the key scalps of Virat Kohli and Shane Watson, and conceded only 18 runs in his four overs to help his side defend 161. But in the other five matches, he has managed to take just one wicket. His performance with the bat has not been good either as he has scored just 110 runs in six outings.

“The Rising Pune Supergiant need him, when you have such quality players in the side and you are desperate to qualify and your back is to the walls then you need to perform. Dhoni has done well, he needs to back this up with a couple of big performances because there have been a couple of guys who have been playing well like Tripathi, Steve Smith is playing well, Manoj Tiwary has done well and Dhoni along with Stokes are probably the two guys who have let the Pune team down,” Ganguly said.

Ganguly also had a word of praise for Dhoni’s calm approach during pressure situations.

“Yes he is pretty calm under pressure. The pressure is the same for most top cricketers, if Virat Kohli does not deliver for 3-4 games for RCB then they go down and same is the case for MS Dhoni. He is so important for the RPS team that he has to stand up and perform for them, he is an exceptional player and it was great to see him play the way he did (against Hyderabad),” said the former player.

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