Truth Behind MS Dhoni's No. 9 Decision Out, Harbhajan Singh, Irfan Pathan Made To Eat Words

“He Likes To Build Drama A Bit’: CSK Batting Coach Michael Hussey On MS Dhoni’s Retirement Plans

File photo of MS Dhoni.© BCCI As IPL 2024 is nearing its conclusion, the talk about MS Dhoni’s retirement plans is also picking pace once again. Speculations were rife last year that Dhoni would call time on his IPL career but the then Chennai Super Kings captain, instead, expressed desire to continue playing for the side. While reacting to a question regarding the retirement plans of Dhoni, former CSK batter and its current batting coach Michael Hussey said that he himself has no idea about it. Hussey gave the statement while speaking to Around The Wicket podcast. He added that Dhoni likes to “build the drama a little bit as well”. When asked if Dhoni would be back next year, Hussey said, “Your guess is as good as mine at this stage. “He keeps his cards very, very close to his chest. We are hoping he does keep going. “He is still batting so well. He does prepare well – he gets into the camp very early and hits a lot of balls. He has been in good touch all season really.” Dhoni has been coming lower down the order to bat this season as he is suffering from a knee issue. “I guess we just got to try to manage him from the body side of things. He had a knee surgery after the last season. So he has been managing that from the initial stage of the tournament,” said Hussey. “From a personal point of view, I hope he keeps going for another couple of years. But we will just have to wait and see. He is the only one who will make that call. And he likes to sort of build the drama a little bit as well. So I wouldn’t expect a decision anytime soon,” he added. CSK are still alive in the race to IPL 2024 playoffs. Their last league match is against Royal Challengers Bengaluru on May 18. Topics mentioned in this article

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IPL 2024 Points Table, Orange Cap, Purple Cap: SRH's Massive Win Makes Playoff Race Tough For CSK. Here's How

IPL 2024 Points Table, Orange Cap, Purple Cap: SRH’s Massive Win Makes Playoff Race Tough For CSK. Here’s How

Openers Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma smoked half-centuries as Sunrisers Hyderabad crushed Lucknow Super Giants by 10 wickets on Wednesday to boost their play-off hopes in the IPL. Chasing a modest 166 for victory, Head, who smashed 89, and fellow left-hander Abhishek, who hit 75, tore into the opposition attack to romp home with 10.2 overs to spare at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium. SRH’s win knocked former champions Mumbai Indians out of the tournament. The win also imapacted Chennai Super Kings as the side slipped a position in the points table with SRH replacing them at the third spot. SRH moved to the third spot with 14 points from 12 matches, while CSK, who are now at the fourth spot have 12 points from 11 matches. Rest of the points table remained unchanged. Here is the updated IPL 2024 Points Table – Virat Kohli continues to hold the Orange Cap with 542 runs from 11 matches while Jasprit Bumrah has the Purple Cap with 18 wickets from 12 matches. Talking about the SRH vs LSG match on Wednesday, Australia’s Head attacked with a flurry of fours and sixes as he reached his fifty in 16 balls and went past 500 runs this season. Head is now third in the batting chart behind Virat Kohli (542) and Ruturaj Gaikwad (541) with his fourth half-century — he also has a ton — in this edition. Abhishek joined the charge as he got to his fifty in 19 balls after the pair took Hyderabad to 107 in the first six overs of powerplay, when only two fielders are allowed outside the inner circle. Hyderabad, who won the IPL in 2016 under David Warner, registered their seventh win in 12 matches to hand a perfect gift to birthday boy and captain Pat Cummins, who turned 31 on Wednesday. Abhishek hit the winning six as Hyderabad moved to third in the 10-team table with 14 points. Lucknow stay sixth after the bruising loss. Top four teams will make the play-offs with the final on May 26 in Chennai. Seam bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar set up victory with impressive bowling figures of 2-12 in his four overs to restrict Lucknow to 165-4 after they elected to bat first. Lucknow lost regular wickets until Nicholas Pooran, who hit 48, and Ayush Badoni, who smashed 55, put on an unbeaten stand of 99 in 52 balls to boost the team total. But the score proved too little against a team which posted record totals of 277 and 287 in this high-scoring edition of the T20 tournament.

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Ramandeep Singh Dismisses Mitchell Starc Injury Concern, Says He's Available For Selection vs PBKS

Ramandeep Singh Dismisses Mitchell Starc Injury Concern, Says He’s Available For Selection vs PBKS

File photo of Mitchell Starc.© BCCI Mitchell Starc has no injury concern and is “available” for selection, Kolkata Knight Riders all-rounder Ramandeep Singh said even as the star pacer indulged in just light training sessions ahead of their IPL clash against Punjab Kings. The Australian cricketer, who attracted a record bid, did not have the kind of return to the league after eight years he would have hoped as he has leaked plenty of runs this season and has managed just six wickets. The left-arm quick also reportedly sustained a finger injury on his bowling hand during their match against Royal Challengers Bengaluru. Starc did not bowl at the nets in their two practice sessions ahead of their match against PBKS, while Sri Lankan pacer Dushmantha Chameera was seen slogging it out, fuelling speculation that the Aussie may be “rested”. But Ramandeep said Starc was available for selection. “Yes, he’s available. It’s got to do with his workload management,” Ramandeep said. “He is a legend. Cricket is a game of time. We can’t judge him from a few matches,” he said. With Starc going through a poor patch, the bowling unit has come under pressure but Ramandeep said, “There has been no discussion on bowling.” “We just discus about execution and plan and how to improve further. We don’t’ judge someone in one or two matches.” With five wins in seven matches, KKR occupy the second spot in the 10-team table and are well placed to finish in top-two. “We are going for one game at a time. We are just focused on Punjab match, not thinking about finishing top two at the moment,” Ramandeep said. He further credited team mentor Gautam Gambhir for their consistent show this season. “Everyone has a lot of clarity. It’s only because of him the team is performing so well. He is backing everyone,” he said. (Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.) Topics mentioned in this article

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IPL 2024 Points Table, Orange Cap, Purple Cap: Delhi Capitals Gain Big With Win Over Gujarat Titans

IPL 2024 Points Table, Orange Cap, Purple Cap: Delhi Capitals Gain Big With Win Over Gujarat Titans

Sharp glovework by skipper Rishabh Pant and some inspired bowling set up a crushing six-wicket win for Delhi Capitals after Gujarat Titans fell to their IPL lowest of 89 on Wednesday. Medium-pace bowler Mukesh Kumar stood out with figures of 3-14 to help bundle out Gujarat in 17.3 overs and Delhi raced to their target in 8.5 overs in Ahmedabad. Delhi, who were without injured David Warner, registered just their third win of this season to jump three places to sixth in the 10-team table. Meanwhile, GT, Punjab Kings and Mumbai Indians lost a place each to slip to the seventh, eighth and ninth spots, respectively. Rest of the points table remained unchanged with Rajasthan Royals holding the top spot. Here is the updated IPL 2024 points table: Virat Kohli led the run-scorers’ chart with 361 runs from 7 matches, while Yuzvendra Chahal was on top of wicket-takers’ list with 12 scalps from 7 games. Talking about the Gt vs DC game, Pant, who returned to this year’s IPL after surviving a horror car crash, stood unbeaten on 16 after Australian batter Jake Fraser-McGurk made a brisk 20. The 26-year-old Pant, a left-hand batsman, has scored 210 runs, including two half-centuries, in a boost to his chances of a return to the T20 World Cup in June. India fast bowler Ishant Sharma dismissed captain Shubman Gill for eight in the second over of the match and Gujarat kept losing wickets to some disciplined bowling. The fielding remained impressive after Sumit Kumar sent back Sai Sudarshan for 12 with a direct throw at the non-striker’s end. Pant was nimble behind the stumps and started with a diving catch to dismiss David Miller off Ishant. The wicketkeeper affected two stumpings when his quick work sent back Abhinav Manohar, for eight, and Shahrukh Khan, for a duck in th espace of three balls off South African spinner Tristan Stubbs. Gujarat slipped to 66-7, but Rashid Khan resisted from one end with his gritty 31 off 24 balls before he fell caught behind with Pant taking a regulation catch behind the stumps. Gujarat’s total is the lowest this season in a contrast to some big scores including two record highs of 277 and then 287 by Sunrisers Hyderabad. (With AFP Inputs) Topics mentioned in this article

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Big Blow For Rishabh Pant's Delhi Capitals: Star Player Heads Home Mid-IPL. Here's The Reason

Big Blow For Rishabh Pant’s Delhi Capitals: Star Player Heads Home Mid-IPL. Here’s The Reason

File photo of Delhi Capitals.© BCCI Delhi Capitals have suffered a major setback as their Australian all-rounder Mitchell Marsh has returned home to undergo treatment for a tear in his right hamstring. Marsh, who is set to be named Australia’s captain for the T20 World Cup in June, was recalled after consultations with the Delhi team management, according to ESPNCricinfo. However, a final call on his availability for the remainder of the season is yet to be taken. Marsh last played against Kolkata Knight Riders on April 3 and missed their previous two outings against Mumbai Indians and Lucknow Super Giants. Marsh’s top-score this season has only been 23 versus Rajasthan Royals, which DC won by 12 runs. He got out for a duck in their 106-run defeat against KKR. Marsh has been on a roll across formats for the Kangaroos, leading to him winning the Allan Border Medal for the most outstanding male Australian cricketer of the year. Since January 2023, the 32-year-old has scored 1,954 international runs in 38 outings at an average of 50.10, including three centuries, besides also taking 10 wickets. Other than Marsh, DC are also concerned with veteran Aussie opener David Warner’s availability for their Wednesday’s away fixture against Gujarat Titans. Warner hurt his finger while attempting a catch against LSG on Friday. He reportedly had swelling in his finger and underwent scans upon the team’s arrival in Ahmedabad. (Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.) Topics mentioned in this article

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