MS Dhoni has one of the fastest pairs of hands in the cricket world. Whenever he was behind the wickets, the batsman hardly got a chance to sneak out of the crease. India’s head coach Ravi Shastri also feels the same and said Dhoni’s hands are quicker than a pickpocket’s hands.
Ravi Shastri recently released his book named Stargazing: The Players In My Life. He mentioned Dhoni’s wicketkeeping abilities in his book.
“MS is an unorthodox cricketer. His technique, in front of and behind the stumps, is not easily replicable. My suggestion to youngsters is don’t try imitating him unless it comes naturally. What made him so successful were his splendid hands. They were quicker than a pickpocket’s,” Shastri wrote on Dhoni in his book.
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“No other wicketkeeper, at least in the era MS has played, was that fast. He was the best in the world for a long while, and in white-ball cricket by a long distance,” he added.
Shastri also hailed Dhoni’s cricketing brain and sharp observation skills.
“MS was sharp in his observation of whatever was happening on the field, and uncanny when it came to taking decisions based on ‘reading’ the trend of play. This quality of his went unnoticed simply because he made such few mistakes,” he asserted.
Meanwhile, Shastri opened up on Dhoni’s retirement and said his decision was ‘brave and selfless’ as he put the team ahead of him.
“MS was India’s, in fact, the world’s, biggest player then with three ICC trophies under his belt, including two World Cups, and some very impressive silverware from the IPL. His form was good, and he was just 10 matches shy of completing 100 Tests.
“Still one of the top-three fittest players on the team, he would have the opportunity to boost his career stats if nothing else. True, he wasn’t getting any younger, but he wasn’t that old either! His decision just didn’t make sense,” said Shastri on Dhoni.
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He further mentions how he approved Dhoni to reverse his retirement call but the former Indian skipper was firm with his decision.
“All cricketers say landmarks and milestones don’t matter, but some do. I approached the issue in a roundabout way, probing for an opening to make him change his mind. But there was a firmness to MS’s tone that stopped me from pushing the matter any further. Looking back, I think his decision was correct; also brave and selfless.”
Dhoni retired after playing 90 Test matched in-between the Test series in Australia back in 2014. His retirement from white-ball cricket came on 15 August 2020 when he shared a video on his social media and informed the cricketing fraternity of his retirement.
