India’s sensational bowler Yuzvendra Chahal expressed his admiration for former skipper MS Dhoni, admitting that he gets tongue-tied in front of MS Dhoni. Chahal revealed that Dhoni is the only person in front of whom he finds himself tongue-tied in his presence.
It has to be noted that Chahal and left-arm wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav have often credited the role of Dhoni behind the stumps for their success at the international level. Both the spinners lost their place in the team after Dhoni’s retirement before they made a strong comeback.
Yuzvendra Chahal Revealed Why He Shuts His Mouth In Front Of MS Dhoni
Speaking on Ranveer Allahbadia’s Podcast ‘The Ranveer Show’, Yuzvendra Chahal recalled an incident when Dhoni asked him about bowling around the wicket during a T20 match against South Africa. He also revealed how he goes silent in front of the legendary captain. He said:
“He is the only person, unke saamne aate hai meri bolti bandh ho jaati hai [I am tongue-tied in front of him]. I don’t speak a lot irrespective of the kind of mood I am in. I just sit still and reply only if Mahi bhai asks something. Otherwise, I just keep quiet,”
On what kind of chat Dhoni has with players, the leg-spinner replied that one can speak on anything with him. He added:
“We were playing a T20 match against South Africa in Centurion. For the first time, I was hit for 64 runs in four overs. [Heinrich] Klaasen was hammering me, so he asked me whether I would bowl round the wicket. I said okay, but then Klaasen hit me for a six,”
Further, speaking about the same incident, Chahal mentioned that Dhoni acknowledged it wasn’t his day and advised him to focus on not conceding boundaries in his remaining five balls. He revealed:
“I was walking back when Mahi bhai came to me and told me, ‘aaj tere din nahi hai, koi baat nahi’ [Today is not your day, it’s okay].
He added: “But he told me that with the five balls that I have left, I should try and not to concede a boundary on those as that will help the team. From that experience, I realized that even if you have an off day, you can still support the team,”
Chahal also said that he blindly trusted MS Dhoni, admitting that he achieved success on multiple occasions by following his advice. He said:
“I blindly trusted him. If he used to tell me something, I used to follow it. Ninety-five per cent, I used to follow what he said and five per cent, I used to tell him about my side.
When we used to come on to bowl, it was after the 10th over, he used to know what is happening on the wicket and how the surface is going to play,”
He added: “I got a wicket in that over or the next one. That blind trust is very important. I am also his fan. He made 50 per cent of my life as a bowler easier. Otherwise, you come in and send down a couple of overs judging the pace of the wicket.
He used to tell us in advance and we used to start attacking from the first over. From me, it was like if Mahi Bhai has said this, then that’s it,”
The veteran spinner has been included in both the limited-overs squads for the ongoing tour of the West Indies. Chahal represented India in 72 ODIs and 75 T20Is. The right-arm leg spinner picked up 121 wickets and 91 wickets in ODIs and T20Is, respectively.
