MS Dhoni Said He Will Give Me Anything In Life, To Not Use 'Mongoose Bat': Matthew Hayden

MS Dhoni is an influential figure. When he asks something from his players they deliver. Dhoni has his say over his players in the national team as well as Indian Premier League (IPL). It is due to his decision making skills and experience that even players respect him to the fore. And former Australia opener Matthew Hayden, who played for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) is one of them.

In an interaction to Rupha Ramani on the CSK Instagram page, Matthew Hayden revealed how MS Dhoni coaxed him to stop using the ‘mongoose bat’.  In IPL 2010, Matthew Hayden had used the bat for the first time. It had a longer handle and short blade and garnered a lot of attention for being unique.

MS Dhoni said please do not use this bat: Matthew Hayden

Matthew Hayden had made an instant impact with the ‘mongoose bat’. Playing against the erstwhile Delhi Daredevils, he notched up a quick-fire 93 off 44 deliveries and almost chased down the target on his own. The bat was touted to be a revolution in the shortest format but it did not last long.

MS Dhoni had asked Hayden to stop using the bat. The former Australia opener also said he practiced with it for nearly a year and when you hit the ball it goes to further distance. “I’ll (Dhoni) give you anything you want in life, to not use this bat! Please do not use this bat,” Hayden said during the live session.

“I’ve been using this bat for practice for about a year and a half and when it hits the middle of the bat it goes 20 metres further,” the left-handed batsman further said in the video.

“I wasn’t going to put my franchise on risk by performing badly because of the bat. I had done my homework.”

“It was a courageous decision to use it and believed it was going to make my game better. On a couple of occasions, I used it, I loved it, it was fun,” Hayden said.

Suresh Raina had recently called Hayden’s 93-run knock as his favourite innings.