There is no denying to the fact that the former skipper of the Indian National Cricket Team MS Dhoni is one of the best tacticians in the game of cricket. He garnered huge praises for his brilliant decisions in the middle as the sipper of the team. Revealing one of the stories, Suresh Raina narrated Dhoni’s strategy against Pakistan in 2015 ICC World Cup.
Though it was the game best remembered for the century by Virat Kohli, it was Suresh Raina, who played brilliantly in the middle overs to help India reach 300 on the board. Later, the bowling department did the job to secure a 76-run victory.
Recalling that innings after five years, Raina said half the credit for that knock goes to then captain MS Dhoni as he had decided to promote him to bat at No.4 for that match. Usually, Ajinkya Rahane was India’s designated No.4 in the World Cup.
MS Dhoni praised me for my batting – Suresh Raina
Raina revealed that it was Dhoni who suddenly walked up to him when Virat Kohli and Dhawan were batting without any discomfort in the middle and asked him to pad-up. Making full use of the promotion, Suresh Raina scored a 56-ball 74 with five fours and three sixes, stitching an important 110-run stand with Kohli.
“I never questioned his decisions. I remember I was having a sandwich or something during our match against Pakistan in World Cup 2015. Suddenly after 20 overs, he said ‘pad-up’. I padded up. Virat was batting really well and this happened just a few overs before Shikhar (Dhawan) got run out. So I got out in the middle, played a few shots and scored 70-80 runs,” said Raina in a YouTube interview.
“After the match, I asked him why did you sent me up the order? He said, ‘I thought you will play better against the leg-spinner who was bowling at that time’. He also praised me for my batting. So I also want to know what goes on in his mind,” Raina added.
All in all, it was a comfortable victory for India and further extended the successful tally of India against Pakistan in world cup games. Later, India once again beat them in T20 World Cup followed by the 2019 World Cup.
