IPL 2019 | Not important to make changes unless necessary, says MS Dhoni

IPL 2019 | Not important to make changes unless necessary, says MS Dhoni

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BCCI

MS Dhoni has stated that changes in the squad should be made only if it’s necessary citing the reason for Mitchell Santner’s inclusion in the match against Rajasthan Royals. A devastated Ajinkya Rahane, however, felt that the Royals had lost the match in the last five overs of the first innings.

Chennai Super Kings continued their winning run in IPL after a heroic 46-ball-75 innings by the skipper saw the side posting a competitive target of 176 after being reduced to 27/3 at one point. The Royals could only make 167 before succumbing to an eight-run defeat as Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur, Imran Tahir, and Dwayne Bravo all took two wickets.

CSK’s one huge change for the match, Mitchell Santner coming on for Harbhajan Singh, didn’t amount to much as the Kiwi bowler ended up conceding 26 runs in two overs. However, Dhoni revealed why the left-arm orthodox bowler was brought in place of inaugural match’s Man of the Match stating a tweak in the squad was only needed when absolutely necessary.

“We have a stable XI and there were a lot less left-handers in the opposition, so we gave Mitch Santner a go. It isn’t that important to make changes if not necessary,” said Dhoni reported, PTI.

“Initially I thought we would look at how the fast bowlers would bowl so we could bring in the spinners. Jadeja and Santner found it hard to grip the ball. Irrespective of the results, it is important to cut the boundaries and it is difficult for the fast bowlers to execute."

The CSK skipper and MoM also threw light on his masterful innings as he came on in a precarious position to build a partnership alongside Suresh Raina before finishing things off in style in the first innings. 

“We wanted to get a partnership going - that was needed. We knew there was some dew on the field. We knew it would get easier as the game progresses. We bat quite deep, until 9 and knew we could accelerate in the last few overs,” said Dhoni at the post-match presentation after Super Kings’ registered their third straight win.

For the Royals, the season is getting from bad to worse as they lost their third match in a row and as they sit on the seventh position just above Royal Challengers Bangalore by virtue of run rate. And Royals’ skipper Rahane was of the opinion that the match was lost in the last five overs of CSK’s innings.

“I am very disappointed. We started off really well in the first ten overs, but what cost us were the last five overs. When MS bats it is very difficult for the bowlers. It was very hard for the bowlers to grip the ball after six overs, even the fast bowlers," Rahane said after the match.

“But CSK bowled really well, they kept taking wickets. As a batting unit, we need to take the responsibility for this. We have played well in the last three games and hopefully, with some luck we’ll be able to turn it around."

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