Is Dhoni's art of finishing in sync with prevalent cricketing logic!

Taking the game deep approach and associated hazards

What a truly fantastic player MS Dhoni is. If there were any doubts about his ball hitting capabilities they were safely out of the window after Sunday's knock of 84 not out against RCB albeit in a losing cause. Is there anything called as cricketing sense or cricketing logic? Experts define it as a terrain where you have to analyse what teams can offer in terms of individual talent in a match scenario. MS Dhoni has mastered the art of finishing games for men in blue and the IPL sides he has played.

Former India player Hemang Badani says Dhoni is carrying too much responsibility on his shoulders and others probably need to come forward to ease out situations. Navdeep Saini the promising pacer who finds a place as a reserve in India's WC squad came into the bowl the 19^th over. His first ball was short of a length outside off. Dhoni sent that to sweeper cover but refused the single on offer. On the other end was not a tailender finding it hard to hold the bat. It was Dwayne Bravo. He repeated the saga on the next ball as well and refused the run.

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Dhoni's strategy was puzzling. Three missed runs in a game that was bound to be settled by close margins. Bravo is a veteran of 443 T20 matches and has over 6000 runs in the format. Surely, those are numbers that warrant your captain has to show faith in you.

The Strategic Punt

Chennai needed 26 off the last over with MS Dhoni in the mood to murder the bowling attack. The match had almost slipped into RCB's hands but Dhoni hit a four and sent three balls over the fence off Umesh Yadav, leaving his side needing 2 off the last ball. It was not to be as Umesh's last ball was a dot yielding a run-out.

Dhoni is averaging over 100 this IPL and striking at over 140. So it is difficult to really point fingers at those stats. 49 runs were needed off 18 balls against a bowling line which gone to the cleaners this IPL. Navdeep Saini was in red hot form but Dhoni took a risk he often hopes to back with results, i.e. take the game deep and take advantage of gauzing pitch conditions and opposition attack over the last

The 111 m maximum on the second ball of the over was a testimony to Dhoni's blasting prowess. Just that he does not decide to take that route sooner in the game. The one grievance which experts have had with Dhoni over last 2 years in the Indian ODI set up is that he has made the going difficult for other batsmen to follow when he takes up too many deliveries.

The modern game values the role of finishers but as able contributors throughout the game and with a high degree of game assessment dynamics.

Sitting here in the comfort of our homes it is easy to question those 3 singles not taken and blame them for CSK's defeat. But cricket hardly operates on those factors. Yes, we could definitely query as to what comprehensive strategy MS Dhoni might have been thinking about in taking that approach in an intense IPL clash.

Coach's take

"He is so calculated that I would never question the last part of the innings of MS Dhoni. Yes, Bravo's got power, but if MS has got the feeling that he's going to win it this way, then back him every time. He's done it so many times. Tonight, he got us so close again, so I'd never question that." – Stephen Fleming, CSK coach after the game said.