Ex-CSK Batter Says He Felt Irritated By MS Dhoni As Opponent

Robin Uthappa and MS Dhoni played together for CSK for two seasons, in IPL 2021 and IPL 2022 respectively. However, when he was part of Rajasthan Royals, Dhoni was pretty annoying for Karnataka-born batter.

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain MS Dhoni is known the world over for his street smartness both as batter and captain. He invented many new cricket shots and changed the way a team is led. His sharp crickerting brain and match awareness makes him stand out from the crowd. Dhoni has been captaining sides since 2007. For almost 16 years, he has continued to win titles. There is no end to Dhoni legends. His former teammate at CSK, Robin Uthappa, has one more. Speaking to Jio Cinema, Uthappa recalled a moment from IPL 2020 when Dhoni's astute captaincy led to wicket of the Karnataka-born batter.

Uthappa said that Dhoni as captain was so sharp that he used to force the opposition batter to play the fault shot. The retired batter said that he sometimes felt irrirated with Dhoni for his ploys against him. Uthappa narrated once incident from 2020 when he used to play for Rajasthan Royals. 

"When I played against CSK (for RR), I used to be very annoyed. I was very irritated with him. (Narrating the IPL 2020 incident) He didn't have a fine leg for Hazlewood, so I knew he will bowl to this angle (outside-off). I tried getting a boundary there (at deep point), and got out. He forces you to play in areas where you're not used to playing," Uthappa said.

The 37-year-old said that Dhoni, by setting a particular field, forces the batter to play in one direction. Uthappa said that Dhoni makes batters think hard on their game. "He plays with batsman's mind. He not just forces the batsmen to think differently, he forces the bowlers to think differently as well. He puts the bowler in a situation where he feels that he needs to take that wicket-taking option," Uthappa said.

Uthappa won a title with CSK in 2021. Previously, he starred in Kolkata Knight Riders' (KKR) title win in 2014. He is one of the IPL veterans who played in 205 matches, scoring 4952 runs at an average of 27.51 and strike rate of 130.55.