Afghan swashbuckler Mohammad Shahzad lauds MS Dhoni

Mahendra Singh Dhoni is one of those cricketers who has received appreciations from audiences across the globe. The cricketer has only grown in stature and hasn’t looked back ever since he made his debut for India way back in 2004 under the leadership of the enigmatic Sourav Ganguly. He also has fans from Afghanistan, wicketkeeper-batsman Mohammad Shahzad is one of them.

The Nangarhar-born cricketer has an affinity towards the former Indian skipper and draws inspiration from him. The same was seen during Afghanistan’s match against India in the 2012 World T20 when Shahzad pulled the ‘helicopter shot’ out of his sleeve to smash Zaheer Khan for a boundary, which pleased Dhoni. The 30-year-old heaped praises on the veteran cricketer from Jharkhand.

Shahzad’s healthy relation with MS Dhoni

“I try to hit it like Dhoni. It is always nice to catch up with the Indian cricketers. They are very warm. I have always looked up to Dhoni and now I have the pleasure of knowing him. I have played against India three-four times and after the match gets over, I have dropped in at Dhoni’s room and chatted for hours,” Shahzad was quoted as saying on TOI.

He has carved a reputation for being a fearless cricketer and someone who prefers to take the attack to the opposition. He also received the ICC Associate and Affiliate Cricketer of the year award in 2016. The top-order batsman also mentioned his frequent conversations with Dhoni, who is currently leading the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the eleventh edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL).

“He usually asks me ‘what’s happening in Afghanistan’ and at my home. We don’t tend to talk a lot about wicket-keeping and batting, it is just regular stuff about life. His room is always open for a chat but yes, it is tough to reach him on his mobile number” he stated.

Here is MS Dhoni’s journey:

Stay updated on ‘today’s cricket news‘ with CricTracker.com.