IPL 2021: Stephen Fleming speaks on MS Dhoni's struggles with the bat and CSK's back-to-back losses

He said CSK were 10-15 runs short of having a match-winning score against DC.

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) head coach Stephen Fleming has come out in support of struggling MS Dhoni, saying the CSK captain was not the only batter to struggle at the Dubai wicket in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL 2021) in the UAE.

Dhoni has been completely out of form in the ongoing IPL 2021, as the legendary wicketkeeper batter has managed only 84 runs in 13 games for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) so far this season.

The right-hander has yet again returned with disappointing innings of 18 runs in the 50^th game of the ongoing IPL 14 against Delhi Capitals, as CSK could post only 136/5 in Dubai on Monday, October 4.

After suffering a three-wicket loss against DC, Fleming backed Dhoni and credited Delhi bowlers to make things tough for the Chennai batters. He also admitted CSK was 10-15 runs short against DC in Dubai.

Read Also: IPL 2021: ‘Very good effort to make a game out of it’, says MS Dhoni after CSK’s last over loss to DC

Fleming said during a virtual post-match press conference: “Dhoni was not the only one, it was a difficult day for strokeplay. 137 was almost enough, it was a tough wicket to score big on in terms of big shots, both teams struggled with it towards the end of the innings. Sometimes, you set your sights too high, probably we were just 10-15 runs short of having a match-winning score.”

The coach further added, “That is the difficulty at the moment, trying to assess what the conditions are at three different grounds, there was no lack of intent. We had to stabilize after a couple of mistakes. Delhi bowled well in the last five overs, they were really smart.”

Read Also: IPL 2021: Fans react to CSK skipper MS Dhoni's turtle-paced knock against Delhi Capitals

Meanwhile, Fleming has admitted that the pitch in Dubai was very difficult, but at the same time accepting that there were clumsy mistakes and CSK must get their intensity back after two back-to-back defeats in the ongoing IPL 14 in the UAE.

The coach further noted, “Yeah, I rather have two defeats now than have two semi-finals, if I have a wish list. There were a lot of mistakes from both sides. Sometimes, when you have qualified, things do change. We are trying to maintain the intensity; there were clumsy mistakes from us which was the most disappointing aspect. But in terms of the competition, one of the most important things is rebounding. We need to just to get our intensity back as before.”

He signed off by saying, “The pitch if you watched it, it was very difficult. There was inconsistency, Bravo is not someone who bangs the ball in, his changes in pace and yorkers are his key weapons. I thought tactics were sport on. We did it really well.”

Noteworthy, CSK will next lock horns against Punjab Kings on October 7 in the ongoing IPL 2021.

(With ANI Inputs)