Very difficult to slog during final overs now says MS Dhoni

India scored just 69 runs in the last 10 overs in the fourth ODI against South Africa

Team India’s inability to smash the ball in the final overs has been widely documented and validated by critics around the world. During a media interaction, the Indian skipper revealed the reason behind him not being able to go for the big shots in the final few overs.

He told Cricinfo, "Now as we are seeing in the 40th to 50th [overs], it's not easy just to go in and slam the big shots and get 80-90 runs. You'll see most of the sides saying, Last 10, if you are chasing, you shouldn't have more than 65 runs or 70 runs'. That also you have to have a good day." Dhoni added that hitting strokes become much more difficult in the final overs as the ball becomes very soft.

The 34-year old stated that a dry pitch acts as a catalyst for the soft ball, which begins to offer reverse swing. Finally, he reasoned about having a fifth fielder on the line, which didn’t guarantee that big shots would convert into runs.

This particular reasoning was highlighted during the fourth ODI in Chennai. India scored just 69 runs and lost five wickets in the last in the last 10 overs. South Africa didn’t do any better, registering 64 runs for the loss of three wickets.

Dhoni said, “And more than the short deliveries, it's the length deliveries that's more difficult to hit because with the reverse swing, the bowlers they can actually cramp you. Even the ones that are short, they are short enough but they don't get to the same height [as the batsman is expecting] which means you have to take that risk of playing the big shot. So it's like the new strategy that has been put by a lot of sides.”

The Rajkot ODI statistics also point towards Dhoni’s notion. In the last 10 over, India notched up 67 runs for three wickets, whereas South Africa registered 60 for three.

Dhoni added, "Bowl just back of a length, slip in the odd yorkers, but as of now on these conditions and these wickets, it's something that's really working. But it's important to be ready with a plan B because it will work but you don't know how long it will work because batsmen will also look to try and get new ways of scoring runs and you may not get the same kind of reverse swing in every game. The ball won't get scuffed up in every game so all of a sudden, when you play on a wicket with a bit more pace, you can use the pace of the fast bowler. In smaller outfields, maybe the fast bowler will find it slightly difficult to have the same strategy."