He also opened up on changes in Shardul Thakur and Ravindra Jadeja’s batting order.
The Chennai Super Kings (CSK) skipper was a shadow of his former self in the ongoing IPL 2021 and even many suggested the legendary skipper should take a backseat, though Dhoni, like he did several times in the past, performed when it mattered most for his team against Delhi Capitals (DC) on Sunday.
Dhoni played a sensational knock of 18* off just 6 balls to take CSK into the IPL 2021 final with cricketers around the world in awe of one of the greatest ever finishers’ another memorable inning in Dubai.
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After Dhoni pulled off a sensational win for CSK on Sunday, Chennai head coach Stephen Fleming revealed that the skipper’s match-winning knock was very emotional for the team's dressing room.
Fleming said in the post-match press conference after the match: “It was emotionally great for us. We know the pressure that he has and the expectation that there is on him and again he came triumph for us. So it was emotional in the dressing room.”
Explaining the reason behind the tactical call of changing Ravindra Jadeja’s batting position during Qualifier 1 against DC.
He said: “He is a world-class [player] and he may come out no. 5 in the final, we know how good he is but we are also trying to utilize our other resources well. It's not always right, it's not always wrong. It's trying to get a gut feel on where players could make maximum impact.”
He mentioned, “It was a really positive move, what we were trying was to really get ahead of the game. Robbie was struggling a little bit, and he had an aggressive role and we wanted to continue that. Take some pressure off Ruturaj, and instead, we get 15 to 20 runs in quick time and it will help in the back end of the game. It didn't pay off but the thinking is positive and in line with how we want to play the game.”
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The CSK head coach said that the decision was made after a lot of discussions with Dhoni right through the chase.
He added, “We had a lot of chat, I think we spoke more in these 20 overs than we have in a long time. There was a lot of technical discussions and just trying to work out how this was going to unfold, who was going to make maximum impact.”
Fleming signed off by saying, “But I tell you what when the captain gets that look in his eye and says 'I'll go'... there have been well-documented times when he has done that. And today was one of that. And so I’m not holding him back, and we saw the result of that.”
(With ANI Inputs)