'I am forever indebted to MS Dhoni and Stephen Fleming for keeping faith in me' - Shane Watson

The fate of a player in Indian Premier League can turn upside down just in a couple of seasons. Due to the cut-throat competition in the league, many players get axed from the side for delivering inconsistent or below-par performances. However, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) has earned the reputation be being one such franchise which backs its players to the core.

CSK and Australian stalwart heaped praise on the MS Dhoni-led side for putting faith in him and backing him despite not being in his best touches before IPL 2020. After joining the CSK camp a couple of years ago, the right-hander has played a pivotal role in the franchise’s success in the league.

Watson expressed gratitude towards the franchise and thanked skipper Dhoni and coach Fleming for backing him and keeping faith in him during his lean patch. Watson said that he’s forever indebted to both Dhoni and Fleming for not axing him from the team in the situation when he was failing to contribute runs with the bat. Watson retaliated and amassed 555 runs in IPL 2020 with two centuries, including a 57-ball 117 in the final against Sunrisers Hyderabad.

“You can go for 10 games not scoring runs and still get picked. Last season, thank you to MS Dhoni and Stephen Fleming for keeping the faith. Every other franchise would have been– You are gone. Thank you for coming, but you are sitting and you are running the drinks,” Watson said in an Instagram live session on CSK’s handle.

Shane Watson played a crucial knock in IPL 2019 final

“Through that period, unfortunately, I felt like I was batting well but I was just not scoring runs and that kept going on and on. At some stage, I was feeling after a couple of games that they are going to have to move me on, but they didn’t,” Watson said.

“And then when things turned around, which I knew it would at some stage, I thanked MS and Fleming for keeping the faith, and they said there was never any doubt. And that’s phenomenal. That made me feel 10-foot tall. That’s the power of amazing leadership. To know when to stick with people you believe in, and that’s amazing for me. And I am forever indebted to those guys,” he added.

Watson delivered yet again for CSK in the final of IPL 2019 against Mumbai Indians. The Australian opener batted with a bloodied knee in the final and scored a crucial 80-run knock before getting run out. Watson had injured his leg while diving to make the crease. Despite getting six stitches, the all-rounder decided to bat on and propel his side’s run chase.