Chennai Super Kings (CSK) seem to be back to the grove, after losing their first match to the Delhi Capitals (DC) by a big margin, they have managed to win their last two games. CSK’s bowling have been absolutely marvelous and their bowlers have a knack of picking wickets regularly and breaking crucial partnerships. Their batting has been fairly decent as well. CSK have a really long lower middle order and everyone seem to be in good nick. However their main concern with the bat is their captain, MS Dhoni. Arguably the greatest player in the history of the league, MS Dhoni seems to be out of touch and isn’t able to time the ball like he would like to. He needs to get back to form as soon as possible because if CSK are to do well in the ongoing IPL-2021, then Dhoni’s form is very crucial. The only way MS Dhoni can get his form back is if he bats slightly up the order. So what makes us think that MS Dhoni needs to at the top for CSK? Could he excel at the top of the innings? Today we shall be discussing 3 reasons why MS Dhoni should play at the top-order for CSK in IPL-2021.
1) He Can Take His Time and Settle:
The major criticism Dhoni often gets is that he eats a lot of deliveries during the death overs. His strike rate in the first 10 balls he faces is less than 50 and he often takes his time to settle. This often costs his team 10-15 runs. If MS Dhoni bats higher up the order he can take his time and settle. Once he is settled he can go big and freely play the big shots as he has understood the pitch conditions and can make up for the dot deliveries he faces early on.
2) Targetting Bowlers:
We often see that batsmen target the wrong bowler and get out and leave their team stranded in trouble. Targeting bowlers and knowing which bowler to target is essential as you can make up for the good deliveries by the other bowlers and hit the “Not so good” deliveries by bowlers who seem to be off their line and lengths. Not all bowlers have a good day on the field and one bowler is due for a bad day. If MS Dhoni bats in the top-order than he can take his time and study the kind of deliveries each bowler is bowling. This also gives him time to undertand which bowler is having a bad day on the field and which bowler isn’t.
3) Slow Starter Against The Spinners:
MS Dhoni is vulnerable against spin during the start of his innings. This is a well documented fact. Whenever he sees a spinner during the start of his innings, he tends to take his time and play it safe, irrespective of the match situation. In order to give him that luxury, he needs to bat up the order and ensure he can take the first 8-10 deliveries to play the spinners and go big. An important point to be noted is that he is strike rate after facing 20 balls is more than 150 and he can very well make up for the dot balls he plays against the spinners, i.e in the start of his innings.