Former India player Gautam Gambhir said that MS Dhoni should promote himself in the batting order after his side Chennai Super Kings (CSK) seal their playoff berth. However, CSK registered a convincing six-wicket win in the IPL 2021 encounter against the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) on Friday.
While all their batsmen contributed to the run chase, MS Dhoni and Suresh Raina finished the chase in style. During a discussion on Star Sports, Gautam Gambhir said that MS Dhoni should bat up the order once CSK ensures themselves a knockout berth as well.
READ HERE: Shaun Tait explains why speedsters struggle to bowl 150+kmph
He elaborated: “MS Dhoni should bat at No.4 once CSK qualifies for the playoffs, irrespective of whether you are chasing or batting first so that you are able to spend time in the middle. I will want to see that, hopefully it happens. The best thing about a captain is that it is his own wish, he can bat anywhere he wants.”
Gautam Gambhir continued: “Your No.3 and No.4 will not always score runs. You need to bat a little more. The more runs you score, it will keep getting easier. You will qualify for the playoffs but it should not happen that the responsibility falls on you, you lose early wickets and you have to come and score runs.”
However, MS Dhoni has so far scored only 51 runs this year. He will certainly hope to score more as well. And, former India pacer Irfan Pathan has stated that MS Dhoni and Suresh Raina regaining their form will be the biggest boost for the CSK batting lineup.
READ HERE: Aakash Chopra opens up on New Zealand’s T20 World Cup squad
He reasoned: “The confidence CSK will get from this innings is also a good thing. If you have Ruturaj Gaikwad, Faf du Plessis, Rayudu and Moeen Ali – all these four in form, then if MS Dhoni and Raina get their form, it will be the icing on the cake. Considering that, it is great news for CSK that Raina and MS Dhoni played unbeaten knocks. They are just two points away from qualification and they will qualify. So they will need crucial runs from them, if you are in form it makes a difference. You can expect 20-25 runs off ten deliveries from both of them.”
