Sabbir Rahman reveals how MS Dhoni gave his bat to him on one strict condition

Remember the moment when Bangladesh middle-order batsman Sabbir Rahman got stumped by India’s gloveman MS Dhoni in the ICC World T20 game at M Chinnaswamy Stadium in 2016? Well, Sabbir has admitted that he had learned his lesson from the Indian keeper and tried not to repeat that mistake in the last year’s World Cup 2019 when he got back to the crease just in time.

MS Dhoni is well known for his lightning-quick stumpings behind the wicket and is regarded as one of the best keepers in cricket history. Sabbir, in WT20 2016 game against India, made 15-ball 26-run knock with three fours and one six, but MS Dhoni’s lightning work kept India back in the game.

‘Aaj Nahi’ – Sabbir Rahman to MS Dhoni

In the 2019 World Cup in England, Sabbir was in good touch against India. During the course of his knock, he was trouble by Chahal with his beautiful spin bowling, where Sabbir tried to hit the India leggie by coming out of the crease, but he missed it out and later came back to the crease just in time to save his wicket. He later told Dhoni, ‘Aaj Nahi’.

“Dhoni stumped me during the World T20 2016 in Bangalore. He was standing for stumping again this time also, I slide before him while running and told him that ‘Aaj Nahi’ [not today],” Sabbir told Cricfrenzy during a Facebook live.

He also revealed that he asked the Indian gloveman about his success mantra in hitting long sixes. Dhoni responded to Sabbir my saying it’s all about confidence to hit the ball out of the park, “[During the home series in 2015] I asked him [MS Dhoni] how you hit such big sixes. Whatever you hit becomes six, how. Tell me the secret of your bat. What is in your bat that we don’t have and as a result our sixes don’t go as far as your ones,” added Sabbir. “He told me that it’s just confidence. Besides, there is nothing in my bat. If I think that I’m going to be hit six, then there will be 90 sixes out of 100. That is confidence,’’ he said.

Sabbir later asked MS Dhoni to give one of his bats to him. MS Dhoni promised to give his bat but only on one condition, “Then I say to him give me one of your bats and I will try to play against you with that bat and He told me that not against us, you can play with another team but can’t play against me,” he concluded.