“Takes someone else's trash and makes them a treasure” – Former CSK star calls MS Dhoni a ‘magician’

Former Australian cricketer Mathew Hayden hailed Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain MS Dhoni for his captaincy after they reached the IPL 2023 final. The 51-year-old credited the ‘Captain Cool’ for bringing out the best of the players despite having limited options, especially in the bowling unit.

Speaking to PTI, Hayden said:

"MS is a magician. He takes someone else's trash and makes them a treasure. He is a very skillful and positive captain. He said something really interesting which I thought summed up not only his humility and his truth around cricket where he is represented and that is in Tamil Nadu Cricket Association.”

He continued:

"The alignment between that association and the franchise, how strong that is in terms of building that process. To me, that is MS. There is a systematic way of going through things and working through them. He did that for India and he is doing it for Chennai Super Kings.”

It’s worth mentioning that Dhoni continued to back youngsters Matheesha Pathirana and Tushar Deshpande throughout this IPL season. Pathirana has scalped 17 wickets in 11 games at an economy rate of 7.72, while Deshpande has picked up 21 in 15 games at an economy rate of 9.61.

In addition, he also got the best out of Shivam Dube (386 runs in 15 games) and Ajinkya Rahane (299 from 13 matches).

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“We try to create an environment and work out what is the strength of a fast bowler” – MS Dhoni

MS Dhoni recently shed light on the growth of Matheesha Pathirana and Tushar Deshpande this season. He credited support staff for bringing out the best of the players.

Speaking in the post-match show after Qualifier 1, Dhoni said:

“We try to create an environment and work out what is the strength of a fast bowler. We try to give them confidence and tell them 'please try to explore your bowling'. We try to motivate them as much as possible. The support staff is there, Bravo and Eric are there. You see the wicket and according to that you keep adjusting the field.”

CSK will now face defending champions Gujarat Titans (GT) at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday, May 28, for the IPL 2023 trophy.