On Slow Turning Pitches No One Captains Better Than MS Dhoni: Sanjay Manjrekar

Sanjay Manjrekar, former Indian batsman-turned commentator, feels that Chennai Super Kings will have an advantage on the spin-friendly tracks of the United Arab Emirates in the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League as they have a tailor-made attack for the conditions and also primarily because of the presence of MS Dhoni, who Manjrekar hailed as the best in the business when it comes it captaining spinners.

The 13th edition of the Indian Premier League is set to take place in the United Arab Emirates [UAE] between September 19-November 10. The tournament will take place across three venues in Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, and Dubai, which are generally conducive to spin bowling.

Sanjay Manjrekar, in his column for Hindustan Times, wrote that CSK will have an advantage, given the fact that they based their squad around spinners and they have a captain, who is brilliant when it comes to leading the side in tailor-made spin-bowling conditions.

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”Such conditions are also in MS Dhoni’s comfort zone”- Sanjay Manjrekar

Chennai Super Kings will be without the services of seasoned off-spinner Harbhajan Singh, who has pulled out of the tournament due to ‘personal reasons’. But despite that, they have a great variety when it comes to spinners in the form of Piyush Chawla, Imran Tahir, Mitchell Santner, Karn Sharma, rookie R Sai Kishore and all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja.

‘When you look at the teams through this lens, CSK start with an advantage with their selection; Chepauk, CSK’s home, has been a turner for a while now, so they picked players who would thrive there. Chawla is such a welcome addition to their team. This is a spin attack that looks perfectly suited for the UAE; they may be able to get more out of Ravindra Jadeja as a bowler too.” Sanjay Manjrekar wrote.

”Such conditions are also in Dhoni’s comfort zone. On slow turning pitches, no one captains better than MS. That he also has an experienced batch of Indian batsmen proficient on such pitches, make them strong contenders,” he added.

Sanjay Manjrekar also reckoned that playing in the third gear, i.e choking the opposition by taking the game deep, has been CSK’s strength over the years but he feels that the approach is also the major reason why they have struggled against the Mumbai Indians in recent years, who he thinks play in top-gear, i.e by taking the game by the scruff of its neck and imposing themselves on the opposition.

”Playing in third gear is CSK’s way. But that’s why, of late, MI have troubled them the most. Because no one does top gear like MI, with Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya and Kieron Pollard in their midst.” Manjrekar added.

CSK and MI will kick off the 13th edition of the Indian Premier League on September 19.