New Delhi: Mahendra Singh Dhoni is an unconventional and unique leader according to his Chennai Super King (CSK) teammate Faf du Plessis. The South African said Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s biggest strength is his incredible gut feeling.
Instinctive captain
The former South Africa skipper has spent considerable time with Dhoni after joining the IPL side in 2011. Du Plessis has been an integral part of the team’s successful journey.
“He (Dhoni) reads the others player really well. He uses that to make instinctive decisions on the field. He’s got an incredible gut feeling on the game. I think that’s his biggest strength,” Du Plessis said in a Facebook live session with Bangladesh ODI skipper Tamim Iqbal.
Dhoni has changed the meaning of captaincy
The 35-year-old said Dhoni changed his perception of how a captain should be.”It was amazing for me to see how different MS (Dhoni) was as a captain. MS (Dhoni) never spoke in team meetings which I thought was necessary. He was different,” Du Plessis pointed out.
“He (Dhoni) doesn’t believe a lot in team meetings. He’s a very instinctive captain. He’s got such a good cricket brain that he relies on it to make the right decisions on the field,” Du Plessis added.
Dhoni last played for India in World Cup semifinal last year. People thought that he would return to action in the in the now-postponed IPL. There has been speculation that he may call it a day from all forms of cricket this year.
Best finisher
Du Plessis called Dhoni the best finisher he has played with. He said no one can emulate what the dasher from Ranchi can do with the bat.
“He’s extremely calm. I haven’t played with someone who is a better finisher than him. It’s just remarkable to watch him from the other side of the pitch,” said Du Plessis.
“If someone else tries to do it like him they won’t be able to. He’s (Dhoni) just so unique like he times the ball so late he’s got an incredible calmness. He knows his game and he picks a bowler and goes for it,” the former South African skipper added.Learning experience
Learning experience
Du Plessis said that playing for CSK alongside Dhoni and under the guidance head coach Stephen Fleming has helped him. He has learnt a a lot about leadership.
“I’m lucky to have started my journey at CSK because I have really learned a lot from a leadership point of view. I tried to learn as much as possible from Dhoni and Stephen Fleming. Both are great captains.” Du Plessis said.
Agencies