MS Dhoni told me to believe in my abilities, discloses Mukesh Choudhary

08/01/2022

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Chennai Super Kings’ emerging left-arm pacer Mukesh Choudhary has revealed MS Dhoni had always told him to believe in his abilities whenever he failed to live up to the expectations. Choudhary also gave credit to his 'friend' Ruturaj Gaikwad for supporting him throughout the campaign.

Mukesh Choudhary made a name for himself in IPL 2022 for Chennai Super Kings (CSK). The 26-year-old left-arm seamer, who finished as the leading wicket-taker for Maharashtra in the 2021/22 edition of the Vijay Hazare Trophy, was picked by the Yellow Army at a base price of INR 20 lakh in the mega auction. He bowled impressively in IPL 2022, taking 16 wickets in 13 matches at an economy rate of 9.32.

Talking about his experience, published by CSK's official website, Choudhary admitted he would have never imagined getting a chance to play in IPL, that too under Dhoni. Then he went on to speak about how India's former flamboyant captain kept him motivated whenever he did not bowl up to the mark. Further, he added that Ruturaj Gaikwad, whom he labelled as his 'friend', gave him support throughout IPL 2022 to keep himself confident.

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“I never thought I would play for Chennai Super Kings. When I was on the team bus (for the first time), Dhoni tapped me on the shoulder and I was like, ‘Oh this is happening with me’ and I felt very proud," Choudhary said on chennaisuperkings.com.

“In my first two matches, I couldn’t perform to my potential. So, I used to talk to him (Dhoni) every day and also in between matches. Dhoni told me to believe in my abilities. Rutu (Ruturaj) is my friend… so he was always there with me, he supported me and gave me the confidence saying, ‘You have everything, you just have to believe in yourself because for every player it happens, where they go through this phase."

Choudhary was recently signed up along with Chetan Sakariya as overseas players by the KFC T20 Max series in Queensland.