Dhoni keeps his end-over promise

[Ultimate_Game]

This article by Siddhartha Vaidyanathan hits the nail on the head, especially the bolded part. These are the exact reasons why I rate Dhoni so highly and I couldn't have put it better. After following Team India since 90s and remebering how we used to fold at the hint of pressure, couldn't agree more with the bolded part. Dhoni may not be the best batsman going around or the most attractive or even the most technically proficient but I wouldn't want any other batsman at the crunch out there in the middle. If there's a definition of clutch, this is it.

This was not cricket; this was poker. MS Dhoni was too calm, too cool, too sly. He bluffed and bluffed. He raised the stakes even as wickets fell. He rode his luck, survived a close run-out chance, escaped two perilous mix-ups with Ishant Sharma, and closed it out. Dhoni wasn't even supposed to play this match. And it was clear that he was struggling with injury through his innings. He declined some easy singles and didn't take some twos he would have normally harried through. He was up against the run rate. He was up against a sharp Rangana Herath, Lasith Malinga and Angelo Mathews. And he was up against pressure. He overcame them all. There is plenty to say about Sri Lanka's batting, India's bowling, and India's top order. There is a lot to write about Rohit Sharma's innings. And there is much to talk about Herath. But let them be for now. Dhoni walked in at 139 for 4. He tapped and blocked. Occasionally he nudged. It took him 16 balls to get to 4. Meanwhile his partners came and left. Suresh Raina swished at an away-goer; Ravindra Jadeja played back to one that nipped back in; and R Ashwin was done in by the arm ball. Bhuvneshwar Kumar made nothing (though he did hang around for 15 crucial balls), and Vinay Kumar had a popcorn burst in his head when, on 5, he tried to slog a short ball out of the ground. Twenty runs were needed off 22 balls. With Ishant, the last man, sauntering in. Dhoni played out two balls. Then took a single. And Ishant blocked out the final delivery. The next three overs tell you the story of India's finest finisher. He waited. And he waited more. This was classic Dhoni. He bides his time until the game reaches a boiling point, plays out the best bowlers, pushes the required rate higher and higher, and then backs himself to win the face-off. Javed Miandad did this often. As did Michael Bevan. Dhoni has turned it into an art form. With 19 needed off 18, he faced Malinga. He patted the first ball down the pitch and defended the next one to the off side. The third was slightly wide but he smashed it to cover. He saw a chance to sneak a single but turned it down. The fourth ball was fuller, on off stump, and he wristed it to deep midwicket for two. A typical Dhoni hustle, manoeuvering the gaps with his tennis-ball technique. The next ball was angled to third man. Again he turned down the single (even with only one ball left). The last ball was a bit wide. He tapped it to point and hollered, "No". Ishant, who was halfway down the pitch, was lucky to survive a run out. Seventeen were needed off 12. Ishant stayed on strike for the whole over from Mathews. He was nearly run out off the first ball. He picked off two runs off the fourth. And blocked out the next two. Fifteen were required off the final over. And Dhoni asked for a change of bat. "A 2kg bat," as he later revealed. There is a reason India adores Dhoni. For those who followed Indian cricket in the '80s and '90s, he may even come across as a messiah. Those were the days India choked and crumbled. They withered at the first hint of pressure. Their batsmen seemed to know exactly when and how to combust. All would be hunky dory until a slew of wickets wrecked their progress. Match after match, big tournament after big tournament, India pined for a batsman like Miandad. Or Saleem Malik. Or Bevan. Or Steve Waugh. Or any number of others who could stay ice-cool in a chase. They craved reassurance when the rate climbed. They yearned for some batsman to steer them calmly. Dhoni's calm can be intimidating. It's as if he absorbs all the pressure as he works himself into a zone. Those watching can feel this. They understand that he gauges the pulse of the game, that he reads the opposition and the conditions. They are so used to his ways in ODIs that they trust him to take the right decisions at the right time. Fifteen off the final over with a wicket in hand - that's what schoolboy dreams are made of, the kind of scenario that young kids imagine while they stare into a life-size mirror. The first ball of the final over was short and slightly wide. Dhoni tried an almighty hoick and missed. Many other batsmen would have cussed aloud. Or admonished themselves. Dhoni walked away towards square leg. The second ball was full and wide. It stood no chance against his pendulum swing. A monstrous six. The third ball was on a length. He carved it behind point. Five needed off three. The fourth ball was also on a length. Another meaty swing. Another six. Match over. Tournament won. Let's all go home. The Sri Lankans were stunned by the assault. Dhoni's team-mates looked shocked too. The commentators were delirious. And those at the ground went bananas. But when all these people sit back and quietly consider the final stages of the match, they will be overcome by a sense of inevitability. Dhoni is no doubt a badass finisher. He is one of India's finest ODI batsmen. And he is their most decorated captain. But his true contribution goes far deeper. He has managed to turn a fan base inured to close defeats and panicky collapses into a set that refuses to believe that a game is lost as long as he stays in. There was a time when Indian fans turned off the TV when Tendulkar got out (and Dhoni too has admitted to having done the same when he watched the 2003 World Cup final). But the thinking these days seems to have been turned on its head, almost to a point where fans tune into a game when their captain walks in.

Link... http://www.espncricinfo.com/tri-nation-west-indies-2013/content/story/650509.html

[maniac]

whatta beaaasht

[Ram]

He is simply rewriting the playbook when it comes to the art (and science) of batting under pressure. Other international batsmen would do well to study him and understand his mentality and mindset in terms of how he approaches these situations. The one thing that separates him from the rest is his decision to defer the risk to as late as possible so that the game essentially boils down to him versus the opposition. This is great if he succeeds, because then we win and he gets all the plaudits (like yesterday). But if he fails, then we lose and yet there’s no recourse for the team beyond that. But more often than not, his success rates are higher than the failure rates. Dhoni’s ODI closing skills are the closest I have seen to a last minute game-winner from a Jordan or a Kobe. If it works, the glory’s on them. If it does not, they bear the entire criticism. But that does not stop from taking the responsibility all on themselves and you need self-belief on an unbelievable level to be able to do that. If you look at the larger picture in terms of his batting exploits and what he has been able to accomplish as ODI captain, it is quite reasonable to claim that he is the greatest match-winner in the history of ODIs. Whether he’s the greatest ODI batsmen of all time, is still slightly debatable (Sachin dominated this aspect for the sport for 2 decades, while Dhoni’s international career is less than 40% in duration when compared to Sachin’s).

[maniac]

He got lucky that the tail ate up some deliveries because Loins took a gamble of bowling out Malinga....I think we are going too far going ga ga over this...It was good to great but calling him a genius is going overboard.....I am sure if it was a bigger target ,last over would have been bowled by Malinga,I am not saying DHoni wouldnt have been able to do the same against him but definetely would have been a bigger challenge than Eranga.

[bulbul]

He got lucky that the tail ate up some deliveries because Loins took a gamble of bowling out Malinga....I think we are going too far going ga ga over this...It was good to great but calling him a genius is going overboard.....I am sure if it was a bigger target ' date=last over would have been bowled by Malinga,I am not saying DHoni wouldnt have been able to do the same against him but definetely would have been a bigger challenge than Eranga.

:agree: such chases happened before as well. He is great but is also got lucky at the end.

[Yoda-esque]

He is simply rewriting the playbook when it comes to the art (and science) of batting under pressure. Other international batsmen would do well to study him and understand his mentality and mindset in terms of how he approaches these situations. The one thing that separates him from the rest is his decision to defer the risk to as late as possible so that the game essentially boils down to him versus the opposition. This is great if he succeeds, because then we win and he gets all the plaudits (like yesterday). But if he fails, then we lose and yet there’s no recourse for the team beyond that. But more often than not, his success rates are higher than the failure rates. Dhoni’s ODI closing skills are the closest I have seen to a last minute game-winner from a Jordan or a Kobe. If it works, the glory’s on them. If it does not, they bear the entire criticism. But that does not stop from taking the responsibility all on themselves and you need self-belief on an unbelievable level to be able to do that. If you look at the larger picture in terms of his batting exploits and what he has been able to accomplish as ODI captain, it is quite reasonable to claim that he is the greatest match-winner in the history of ODIs. Whether he’s the greatest ODI batsmen of all time, is still slightly debatable (Sachin dominated this aspect for the sport for 2 decades, while Dhoni’s international career is less than 40% in duration when compared to Sachin’s).

You are rated so I guess nobody is going to grudge your claim:winky:

[Ram]

He got lucky that the tail ate up some deliveries because Loins took a gamble of bowling out Malinga....I think we are going too far going ga ga over this...It was good to great but calling him a genius is going overboard.....I am sure if it was a bigger target ' date='last over would have been bowled by Malinga,I am not saying DHoni wouldnt have been able to do the same against him but definetely would have been a bigger challenge than Eranga.[/quote'] I think your mind is simply incapable of comprehending the sheer calculative genius of the man.

[vvvslaxman]

He got lucky that the tail ate up some deliveries because Loins took a gamble of bowling out Malinga....I think we are going too far going ga ga over this...It was good to great but calling him a genius is going overboard.....I am sure if it was a bigger target ' date='last over would have been bowled by Malinga,[b']I am not saying DHoni wouldnt have been able to do the same against him but definetely would have been a bigger challenge than Eranga.

As long as you have that fear that is a victory for Dhoni. lol. As an SRH fan you would have witnessed how he backed himself to massacre world no.1 fast bowler Dale Steyn. :winky: . Temperament, self-belief, confidence, nerve of steel.. you don't get them in walmart.

[Ram]

You are rated so I guess nobody is going to grudge your claim:winky:

Forget who’s rated and who isn’t – do you disagree with the claim that MSD is the greatest match winner in the history of ODIs? (if you factor in his captaincy, keeping and batting exploits)

[Yoda-esque]

He got lucky that the tail ate up some deliveries because Loins took a gamble of bowling out Malinga....I think we are going too far going ga ga over this...It was good to great but calling him a genius is going overboard.....I am sure if it was a bigger target ' date='last over would have been bowled by Malinga,I am not saying DHoni wouldnt have been able to do the same against him but definetely would have been a bigger challenge than Eranga.[/quote'] You cannot always get lucky.

[maniac]

Hope we run into Loins in many more such finals so that the flag of Dhonism flies high Also Can we name atleast 3 other important games with the exception of Srilanka that Dhoni has pulled this feat....I am sure there are 100's just want to refresh my mind to join this glorious celebration for Sir Dhoni-Please feel free to include IPL Knockouts too

[Number]

You cannot always get lucky.

:agree: http://www.espncricinfo.com/india-v-new-zealand-2012/engine/current/match/565820.html

[Yoda-esque]

:agree: http://www.espncricinfo.com/india-v-new-zealand-2012/engine/current/match/565820.html

That point is conceded. He is not that great in T20s. He needs some time to get going.

[vvvslaxman]

Hope we run into Loins in many more such finals so that the flag of Dhonism flies high Also Can we name atleast 3 other important games with the exception of Srilanka that Dhoni has pulled this feat....I am sure there are 100's just want to refresh my mind to join this glorious celebration for Sir Dhoni-Please feel free to include IPL Knockouts too

He mauled Irfan in one of the must win match with huge asking rate. Then Ashish reddy garu :giggle: bore the brunt once after he canned Dale steyn.

[maniac]

Dhoni is a passenger in T20's In Tests,he is passenger overseas or on tough tracks in India So we are left with ODI's :hmmm: Ok So WC was a big game but what happened to his mythical capabilities against Australia in Q.F a much better bowling side than Loins? Flopped in Semis but obviously we batted first...So not playing to his strngth as he didn't need to finish anything here.... Magically the beast came out against Loin tundlers Champions Trophy against England-Again not his strength we batted first, :beee: Obviously we havent reached a lot of other finals lately CB series 2008,we know who was the star there :giggle: Am i missing something here? The guy is good and consistent but seriously greatest match winner....WHen did this happen This is a genuine question-

[maniac]

He mauled Irfan in one of the must win match with huge asking rate. Then Ashish reddy garu :giggle: bore the brunt once after he canned Dale steyn.

That game is the finest evidence that DHoni is the best I am a convert now

[vvvslaxman]

Russell admitted "If there is one guy in world cricket i would want to bat in this situation that would be Dhoni".. that sentiments will be echoed by pretty much all commies around the world. He has developed that aura with his ice cool temperament and non chalant hitting. Stats won't justify his real beastly finishing quality. We keep trying to quantify certain cricket attributes through cricinfo and get lost in the process.

[maniac]

Russell admitted "If there is one guy in world cricket i would want to bat in this situation that would be Dhoni".. that sentiments will be echoed by pretty much all commies around the world. He has developed that aura with his ice cool temperament and non chalant hitting. Stats won't justify his real beastly finishing quality. We keep trying to quantify certain cricket attributes through cricinfo and get lost in the process.

I will take Mike Hussey over Dhoni any day or over Bevan for the matter of fact....But I guess as a utility player who can keep Dhoni is better.......But just in terms of finishing I will take Hussey over Dhoni or for the matter of fact Symonds,these guys were better floaters too.

[The Outsider]

Whether he’s the greatest ODI batsmen of all time' date=' is still slightly debatable (Sachin dominated this aspect for the sport for 2 decades, while Dhoni’s international career is less than 40% in duration when compared to Sachin’s).[/quote'] I hope you are only talking about the greatest Indian ODI batsman.

[vvvslaxman]

I will take Mike Hussey over Dhoni any day or over Bevan for the matter of fact....But I guess as a utility player who can keep Dhoni is better.......But just in terms of finishing I will take Hussey over Dhoni or for the matter of fact Symonds' date='these guys were better floaters too.[/quote'] Mike Hussey is a specialist batsman who occasionally has to finish. He is good at that unlike some of our "specialist batsmen". Dhoni has to do day in day out.. Dhoni has more facets to his ODI game than you seem to know. http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/match/589308.html http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/match/377314.html