CSK batting coach Michael Hussey reveals how one exchange of batting data did not go down well with MS Dhoni.
Former India and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain MS Dhoni is known for remaining ice-cool on the field and calm under every situation, no matter how stressful it is. However, there was one incident in which MS Dhoni, quite contrary to his nature, ended up losing his temper, and that too at the five-time IPL-winning team’s batting coach, Michael Hussey.
Michael Hussey reveals how one exchange of batting data did not go down well with MS Dhoni. (PTI)
Dhoni’s former teammate and the current batting coach revealed an incident where the wicketkeeper-batter left him stunned during his first stint as the coach in the cash-rich league.
For the uninitiated, Michael Hussey joined CSK as a batting coach in 2018, when the franchise returned to the tournament after the two-year ban. The eventual winners of the league in 2018 had to face SunRisers Hyderabad in Qualifier 1.
Then, Hussey revealed that he couldn’t get too technical with Dhoni, even if he were talking about how to play Rashid Khan and get the better of the Afghanistan spinner.
“I love it. The talent there is unbelievable and you get to coach, ‘loosely’. It is more like not to try and stuff them (players) up, with some of the greatest players around,” Hussey said on the Backchat Podcast.
“To be able to work with MS Dhoni, for example, the greatest finisher in the history of the game in my mind… I sort of used to pinch myself,” Hussey added before he revealed an iffy exchange,” he added.
‘I’ll bat my own f*****g way’
Michael Hussey then further revealed how an exchange of data regarding Rashid Khan’s variations did not go down well with the wicketkeeper-batter during the Qualifier 1 game. For the uninitiated, in the match, Dhoni was dismissed by Rashid Khan. However, CSK went on to win the match.
“The night before the big game, the analyst sends me through this split screen of Rashid Khan. And it’s basically when he bowls his wrong’uns, he runs in his fingers together and when he bowls his leggy, his fingers are apart. ‘Ooh this is good’. But this is the night before the game though, so I’m sitting on thinking do I send this out to the batters or do I not? I sat looking at it for an hour because you don’t want to put too much stuff guys’ head the night before the game,” said Hussey.
“We were like four down for nothing the next day and Dhoni’s in with Faf at the other. Rashid Khan comes in first ball and bowls the wrong’un. Dhoni goes for the cover drive, hitting against the spin, bowled. You got to understand that this guy is a mega star, like bigger than god. He comes in and looks me straight in the eye and he goes, ‘I’ll bat my own f***ing way, thanks’ and sits down next to me. Oh, Coaching career, done! I sat for the rest of the game like a stunned mullet,” he added.
However, Hussey revealed that he is great mates with Dhoni, and the duo have formed a great camaraderie.
“Dhoni’s a great guy, and he comes up after the game and said, ‘The information was great, but I needed more time and a couple of net sessions to process it,” he added.
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