MS Dhoni told me he would continue till he is fastest sprinter in the team, reveals Sanjay Manjrekar
Dhoni during a practise session
Sanjay Manjrekar has revealed a chat between him and MS Dhoni when the latter told him that he would continue to play international cricket as long as he is beating the best sprinter in the team. Manjrekar has also added that Dhoni’s understanding of how to use his bowlers makes him a great captain.
MS Dhoni might not have played for India for over a year now, but the reason he still continues to rule the roost in every cricket opinion is his amazing fitness, something he's managed to maintain throughout his career. In light of that, Manjrekar revealed an interaction with the former Indian skipper during Virat Kohli’s wedding reception back in December 2017 when Dhoni told him that he would continue playing international cricket till he is the fastest sprinter among all.
"During Virat Kohli's wedding, I had a little corner time with him and he said as long as 'I am beating the fastest sprinter in the team, I am going to consider myself fit enough to be playing international cricket or playing high-level cricket'.
"People like Tendulkar, Dhoni, these are champion cricketers. Once they are on public stage, you will never see Dhoni ever on a public stage, like a cricket field, looking slightly unfit or unable to sprint or run...," Manjrejar said on the latest episode of Star Sports Cricket Connected.
With three title wins, MS Dhoni is the second-most successful IPL captain, only behind Rohit Sharma, and the way he managed the team has been a manual for many skippers around the world. The former Indian cricketer turned commentator put it down to the fact that there are about only four to five bowlers for Dhoni to handle and labelled that the wicket-keeper is brilliant in handling limited resources.
"He is going to be very good and one of the reasons he is so successful and consistent in IPL as a batsman as opposed to international is that he knows that there are about four to five bowlers to hand.
“There are some good ones and there are some not so good ones in the IPL. In international, you have got five quality bowlers, so he's so good at picking out those guys and going after them. So, as a batter, with MS Dhoni in the IPL, I don't see much difference."
