Khaleel Ahmed Spill Beans on the Importance of Having MS Dhoni Behind the Stump

The young pace sensation of India, Khaleel Ahmed shared high praise for former skipper MS Dhoni stating that the latter provides a lot of faith behind the stumps.

Meanwhile, with the Australia series in sight, Khaleel says that working with top-notch Indian players will keep him in good shape for the biggest tour of his life. Khaleel Ahmed has impressed in his short stint in the international circuit.

Talking to Hindustan Times, Khaleel Ahmed credited MS Dhoni for putting forward the helping hand to the youngsters. Interestingly, in the match against Afghanistan in the Asia Cup, Dhoni was seen smiling at the end of the final over when Khaleel gave away just four runs.

Not getting into details of what transpired, the pacer said that having Dhoni keep to him meant he could just focus on bowling in the right areas.

“I had the privilege of bowling with Mahi bhai behind the wicket. You know what is the best part for a bowler when he is keeping wickets? You don’t think about dropped catches and edges going through the gap when he is handling the zone behind the wicket. If you saw, I would keep the slip a little wide coz I knew Mahi bhai is there. As a bowler that sense of faith is huge. This apart, he was always there to tell me the line and length I should be focusing on. His calm demeanour almost rubs off on you,” Khaleel Ahmed added.

Landing a few days ahead in Australia will help

Talking about the upcoming Australia series, Khaleel said that landing a couple of days in advance will help in to acclimatize to the conditions.

“We are going there a few days before the opening T20I and that will definitely help us gauge the situation and the conditions on offer. I am not thinking too far ahead and will look to make the most of the opportunities presented. Yes, the wickets will aid fast bowling and the idea will be to bowl in the right areas and make the batsmen commit mistakes,” he concluded.