Batting down the order in IPL was like quicksand for me: Dhoni

MS Dhoni, the most decorated skipper in the world said, that batting down the order was like quicksand as it did not give him enough freedom to bat to his full potential. 36-year-old Dhoni scored 455 runs in 16 matches, his second highest IPL finish in its 11-year history. His performance in the IPL was instrumental in getting Chennai Super Kings their third title.

Inspirational skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who guided Chennai Super Kings to their third IPL title triumph this year, said he was determined to bat up the order as coming in the lower half was akin to being in quicksand for him.

"I was sure in my mind that I wanted to bat up the order, because with age, me batting down the order was like quicksand," Dhoni disclosed at an event in Mumbai.

 "I wanted to make sure that I wanted to take the responsibility of winning the game, but I was coming so down the order that I was not giving time to myself,” he added.

He continued to say, "So, it was more like quicksand: the more I flutter, the deeper I would go. So, I said that I want to make a team where we bat deep, that gives me a chance to bat up the order, and to me up the order doesn't mean I want to bat at three, four or five; it's the number of overs”

CSK had one of the best performances, in respect of batting in the death overs with an average of 99 runs between the 16th and 20th over. He wanted to be a part of a team that batted deep so that it gives more opportunity to bat aggressively.

"I said that I want to bat up, so when I go into bat, I would like to bat aggressive, so that even if I get out, it gives others a chance to reinvent themselves about finishing the game, what they need to do, if they are under pressure and all of that," he said.

 "Fortunately, we did not use our batting order to the full extent in the whole of IPL because Watson, Rayudu, Raina, me, Bravo - we all kept scoring runs and that really helped us. But my planning, right from the start, was to make a team which bats deep, where everybody should be able to bat, and that gives me an opportunity to go out there and express myself."