I think we did the small things right: MS Dhoni after KXIP victory

By
Sneha Roy
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0

Dubai: Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni uttered performing the ‘small things right’ framed their energetic 10-wicket victory over Kings XI Punjab (KXIP), on Sunday (October 4). The opening pair of Shane Watson (83*) and Faf Du Plessis (87*) put on an impressive display for CSK.

“I think we did the small things right. That’s what was important to us. The kind of start we got in batting, that’s what we needed. Hopefully we’ll be able to replicate this in the coming games,” Dhoni said after the match.

Asked about Watson’s detection after a line of failures, “It’s not about being more aggressive. He was hitting it well in the nets and what you need is to do that in the middle. It was just a matter of time.Faf is like a sheet anchor for us, keeps playing those shots in the middle. He can always confuse the bowler with the lap shots and all coming in. They complement each other,” he added.

Dhoni said his side’s stability in choosing and head coach Stephen Fleming should be given credit for it. “He (Fleming) deserves much credit for that. The good thing is we have one plan. It’s not that we don’t have debates, but it’s one plan, that’s the relationship between us,” he said. 

Asked about the earlier three losses on the run, “I feel looking at the first 3-4 games, what you really think is you restrict them to as little as possible and that can add pressure. Every team has a furious hitter who can disrupt the bowling and our bowlers did well. We needed momentum with the right kind of shots. Watto and Faf backed themselves with the shots they’re known for,” Captain Cool further added.

Man of the match Watson said he detected something ‘slightly off’ practically in the earlier matches. “It was nice for it to come off. Just a combination of technique and intent. Was able to get the weight through the ball a lot better. Faf and I complement each other well. There are bowlers he (Faf) prefers to take on and he’s a great guy and (it was) good batting with him,” the Australian said.

KXIP captain KL Rahul said it was hard being on the losing side for so many games but assured to keep trying harder. “There’s no rocket science, we know where we’re going wrong. The execution part has been bad,” he said.

“I thought 178 was a good score. The wicket stopped a bit when we started batting, we felt like 170-180 was par on this wicket. But we know if we don’t get wickets against players of this class, we’ll struggle,” Rahul signed off.

CSK will next take on Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on October 7 in Abu Dhabi. KXIP will next take on Sunrisers Hyderabad on October 8 in Dubai.

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