MS Dhoni could take back seat as a batsman while leading CSK in IPL 2020: Sanjay Manjrekar

Millions of cricket fans around the world stuck on edge of their seats as their favourite MS Dhoni came up to grace the field after 14 long months. There couldn’t have been the better start for him as he led the team to a respectable victory in the season opener only. Though CSK was caught in a tight spot when they stumbled 6/2, but as soon as Du Plessis and Ambati Rayudu marched towards the field, the game was already in CSK’s bag.

The team comfortably marked a five-wicket victory over arch-rivals, and some bold decisions by Dhoni got clearly evident from his actions. Before pushing himself on the field, he promoted the likes of all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran. In the same line, former batsman Sanjay Manjrekar feels that these might be the signs for Dhoni as a batsman to take back seat ahead of Dhoni as captain.

“It was amazing to see Chennai win the first game, a team that thrives on turning pitches put up a brilliant winning performance against Mumbai in the opening act,” Manjrekar wrote in his column for The Times of India.

I watched Dhoni as captain in that first game: Sanjay Manjrekar

The commentator stated that Dhoni coming at the end when the chase was almost over reveals a lot of things on his part. Now, he might not be much interested to take a lead role as a batsman, he just wants to play his part of captain well. Sending youngsters like Curran first, he might be making them learn to play under pressure situations.

“I watched Dhoni as captain in that first game where Chennai lost five wickets, and Dhoni ended up zero not-out after facing just two balls. While more evidence is certainly needed, people should not be surprised if they see Dhoni the batsman take a back seat to allow Dhoni the captain to guide the team’s fortunes,” Manjrekar added.

Now with a win against strong contenders like Mumbai, Chennai is standing all tall for its next game. The three-time champions CSK will face Rajasthan Royals in their next game, on September 22 in Sharjah, UAE.