MS Dhoni Wrote On Thigh Pad: Sanjay Bangar Opens Up On Remarkable Finisher

Oct 20, 2020 at 1:39 PM

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MS Dhoni Wrote On Thigh Pad: Sanjay Bangar Opens Up On Remarkable Finisher

Sanjay Bangar, the former India all-rounder, revealed an interesting anecdote about MS Dhoni becoming a great finisher by writing on his thigh pad. MS Dhoni’s innings of 148 against Pakistan and 183 against Sri Lanka were not long after his India debut which escalated him to instant stardom. Still, the biggest success of MS Dhoni was his big-hitting batting ability for which he had a reputation.

MS Dhoni would fearlessly attack the opposition and hit huge sixes, which was unheard of by an Indian cricketer.

However, MS Dhoni’s brute power and strength was second to none, and after being appointed captain, MS Dhoni became a lot more calculated in his shot-making. He played fearlessly and can be compared with former Indian opener Virender Sehwag and former 1983 World Cup-winning skipper Kapil Dev.

MS Dhoni
MS Dhoni. Image Credit: Getty Images.

MS Dhoni Wrote On His Thigh Pad: Sanjay Bangar Who Adds MS Dhoni Followed Process

Sanjay Bangar, the former India batting coach, shared details of how MS Dhoni followed the process by running singles and twos and became a great finisher and revealed an interesting story about why MS Dhoni began curbing his natural attacking self.

“I came to know recently as to how – in his formative years, because he is such a hitter of the ball, has that natural ability to clear – Dhoni curbed his natural instinct. He used to write on his thigh pad – 1, 2 – Tick Tick and 4, 6 – Cross Cross,” Bangar said on Star Sports.

Michael Bevan
Michael Bevan. Photo Credit: Getty Images.

“So every time he would go out to bat, and he’d be putting on his thigh pad, he’d probably have a look at that. It would remind him that he has to follow a process. And that is how by running those one and two he became such a great finisher.”

As a matter of fact, Sanjay Bangar reckons it was the same ability to score singles and twos that made MS Dhoni the ‘best finisher in the world’. Sanjay Bangar states MS Dhoni followed a process by taking quick singles besides hitting boundaries at will.

Michael Bevan was also a great finisher for Australia and was part of 1999 and 2003 World Cup-winning team averaging more than 50 in 232 ODIs played.

“Most finishers in world cricket have realised the importance of singles, doubles. You look at Michael Bevan, look at MS Dhoni. They have this thing in common, which helps them win cricket matches. It’s not those fours and sixes. And that is the process that MS Dhoni follows,” he said.

MS Dhoni retired from international cricket on 15th August, 2020 after captaining India and winning the inaugural 2007 ICC World Twenty20, the 2010 and 2016 Asia Cups, the 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup and the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy.

MS Dhoni is a right-handed explosive middle-order batsman besides being a wicket-keeper and one of the highest run-scorers in One Day Internationals (ODIs) with more than 10,000 runs and is considered an effective finisher in limited-overs formats.

Sanjay Bangar: MS Dhoni Is Slightly Late On The Ball In IPL 2020

Sanjay Bangar also gave his opinion on MS Dhoni’s struggles in the IPL 2020. The CSK captain has appeared a pale shadow of his former self, scoring only 164 runs from 10 matches averaging a dismal 27.33.

“What I have seen so far of MS Dhoni in this season is that he’s stopped doing his pre-delivery movements. Because of that he’s slightly late on the ball and when you’re 38-39, you have to give that extra bit of time when you’re playing pace bowlers in excess of 140-145. If he starts getting that extra slit of a second again, the ball will start connecting the middle of his bat,” Sanjay Bangar said.

MS Dhoni
MS Dhoni. Photo Credit: BCCI/IPL.

His highest score is an unbeaten 47 against Rajasthan Royals and on Monday against the same opponents, he was dismissed for 28 off 28 balls with two fours.

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