IPL 2020 | Never seen anyone as dangerous and destructive than Dhoni during death overs, states Ricky Ponting

Even before the start of the tournament, three-time IPL champions Chennai Super Kings were dealt with a blow, as their top run-scorer Suresh Raina had pulled out of the tournament. Owing to his decision, the franchise has had to shuffle their gameplan massively, which throws open an opportunity for the likes of MS Dhoni, Kedar Jadhav to bat higher up the order. 

While the franchise has not yet hinted at their strategy for the opening game against Mumbai, Delhi Capitals’ head coach Ricky Ponting had a suggestion. The former Australian skipper opined that Raina’s absence might give an opportunity for Dhoni to bat higher up the order, even as high as No.4, which could possibly be CSK’s strategy for the clash against Mumbai. Alongside that, Ponting also admitted that he has never seen anyone more dangerous and destructive than Dhoni during the death overs of the innings. 

“It looks like Suresh Raina won’t be part of the IPL and that means an opportunity for MS Dhoni bat higher up the order, even at No.4 for CSK. If he does that, it gives him time to build his innings and in the last three-four overs, I have never seen anyone more dangerous and destructive than Dhoni himself. Batting at 4 gives him a chance to do that and win games for the franchise,” Ponting told Cricket Australia in a Twitter video. 

On the other hand, for obvious reasons, the former World Cup-winning skipper named Dhoni as the franchise’s danger man, admitting that he has been doing that for 10-12 seasons now. Added to that, Ponting believes that his retirement would only add to his hunger for success after the narrow failure against Mumbai Indians in the 2019 IPL final. 

“Chennai Super Kings’ danger man would be MS Dhoni, who has been that for 10-12 years. Just recently, he announced his retirement from international cricket which only means he would be more hungry for success in the IPL. They were disappointed to not have won the IPL last year but if you look at their overall franchise, they have one of the most successful franchises and he’s lead them to most of those wins.”