‘Kyun Daala Bouncer?’: CSK Bowler Reveals How MS Dhoni's Guidance Transformed His IPL 2023 Journey

CSK pacer Tushar Deshpande shed light on how the former India captain MS Dhoni helped the young bowler to transform his Indian Premier League (IPL) journey during the 2023 season.

CSK bowler sheds light on how MS Dhoni's advice helped him get his IPL campaign on track after a period of struggle.

Source : PTI

MS Dhoni, the two-time world-cup winning captain for India, has been a role model and a source of advice for almost any young cricketing mind. He is known to offer inexperienced players words of cricket wisdom on and off the field. Chennai Super Kings (CSK) pacer Tushar Deshpande shed light on one such incident when Dhoni gave him cricketing advice which helped him get his bearing and help CSK win their record fifth title in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023.

Deshpande’s initial IPL 2023 days saw him struggling with his bowling, however, he turned it all around during the later stages of the season and helped the MS Dhoni-led team win their fifth league title.

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During IPL 2023, Chennai faced a significant injury crisis in their pace bowling unit, with key players like Ben Stokes, Deepak Chahar, Simarjeet Singh, Sisanda Magala, and Mukesh Choudhary all sidelined due to injuries. And then it was Deshpande, who rose to the occasion, taking 21 wickets in 16 matches,with the economy rate of 9.92.

'You Have Everything To Succeed At International Level' Dhoni Told Deshpande

In an interview with ESPNcricinfo, Tushar Deshpande shared a motivational piece of advice he received from MS Dhoni during IPL 2023. Dhoni told him to stay calm during his run-up, focus on his bowling, and not get distracted by the crowd, adding that Deshpande had everything needed to succeed at the international level. Deshpande regarded this compliment from Dhoni as a significant achievement in itself.

"[Dhoni told me]: 'You have everything to succeed at international level. But you have to be calm during your run-up. Don't get distracted by the crowd. Just take a deep breath, stay calm and bowl.' If Mahi tells you that you have everything to be successful at international level, boss, that itself is an achievement," the CSK bowler said.

Deshpande shared how Dhoni supported him even after he bowled an expensive spell in Chennai Super Kings' season-opening loss to Gujarat Titans (GT) during IPL 2023 in Ahmedabad.

"Mahi came to me and said: 'You haven't made any mistakes. You bowled all good balls. It was not your day today. In the next match repeat the same," Deshpande said.

Deshpande also recalled an incident where MS Dhoni questioned his decision to bowl a bouncer after getting hit for a 100-meter six, instead of sticking to yorkers.

"I was bowling good yorkers, but suddenly I bowled a bouncer and got hit for a 100-metre six. He asked me: 'Kyun daala bouncer?' [Why did you bowl the bouncer?] I told him I thought he was expecting the yorker. He told me: Don't play cricket in the mind. Yorker is a yorker and no one can hit you. He was telling me we keep trying to play ahead of the game instead of staying in the present. The other thing he told me is to focus on my fitness, which is important for fast bowlers," he added.