‘When Dhoni is at the crease, the game is not over’: Marcus Stoinis

Australia all-rounder Marcus Stoinis heaped praise on Super Kings skipper MS Dhoni, saying the game is not over when he’s at the crease.

“I spoke to Dhoni after he single-handedly beat Delhi last year in the semi-final. He spoke to me about the routines he goes through, how he sees the game, how he controls it, how he manages his emotions. So there is a lot that goes into it. I feel bad sometimes if I am speaking for him. But I would reiterate the crux of what we spoke about. He just sort of said to me ‘the way you’ve got to approach it is, looking to be there till the end and take responsibility’. There are different ways to do it – score runs early and finish the game by the 18th over,” Stoinis said on the show ‘Backstage with Boria’.

“The risk he feels is to leave it to someone else if you get out. And he said that you build that relationship with your team and everyone around you. Different players understand their different roles throughout the game. For him, it’s to be there till the end and to take ownership. Everyone is thinking when Dhoni is at the crease, that this game is not over. Or that he is in control or somehow it is going to plan, or not. That is part of the art that he has produced and he can have that influence on so many people,” he added.

Stoinis said interacting with Dhoni was inspirational.

“He spoke about how he remains calm and when he remains calmer, he doesn’t need to be better, but in that situation, many people are panicking. They are moving this way and Dhoni is staying where he is. So he’s already getting that advantage. So that was really interesting. We see certain parts of the game very similar. I have had people who have helped me with this side of the game and it’s inspirational to hear it from someone who has done it for so long and a champion of our era of cricket,” said Stoinis.