IPL 2023: If you do what is best for the team, things fall into line, says CSK skipper MS Dhoni

MS Dhoni-led Chennai Super Kings qualified for the Indian Premier League (IPL) playoffs after thrashing Delhi Capitals by 77 runs at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. With the thumping win, CSK are into the IPL playoffs for 12th time in 14 seasons of the T20 league. The only exceptions have come in 2020 and last year where they finished seventh and ninth respectively. Chennai had also missed two seasons of the IPL (2016-17) when they were banned.

IPL 2023: Full coverage | Points table | Schedule | Results | Orange Cap | Purple Cap​

The convincing win over Delhi means CSK have enough of a margin that they’re most likely to finish in the top-two alongside Gujarat Titans. After the win, MS Dhoni said there is no secret recipe to success except having a “team first philosophy.”

“There is no recipe as such (CSK’s playoffs record). You try to pick the best players and try to give them the best slot. You use them in the manner where they have most chances of succeeding and groom them in the areas where they are not as strong,” he said in the post-match presentation.

As part of the approach, MS Dhoni, probably playing his final IPL season, has batted as low as No 8 and given chances to players like Shivam Dube to excel in a role assigned for him.

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For Dhoni, it is imperative that his decisions reflects the team ethos that allows the players to believe in them. “If you are doing whatever is best for the team, it falls into line. The management has been great, including the support staff. They always keep telling us to not worry and to keep doing what we have been doing. But of course, the players are also important.”

Dhoni also alluded to the qualities he looks for in a player in his team. “You need someone who is always team-first. Those are the kind of characters you look for. From a distance, it is difficult to judge that.

“We want them (players) to adjust to the environment. Even if they try to come 10%, we are willing to go to 50% and meet them in the middle,” he said.

The World Cup-winner also praised the pace duo of Tushar Deshpande and Matheesha Pathirana, who have been crucial for CSK this IPL season.

“When it comes to death bowling, confidence is a very important factor. If you look at Tushar, he has developed that death-overs bowling. How many times you can execute under pressure is the main thing. When you are confident, you execute more often than not,” Dhoni said.

“Behind the scenes, a lot of work goes on and I feel the bowlers have taken the responsibility. Pathirana is quite a natural when it comes to bowling at the death so that is one less headache. The way Tushar has come around has been remarkable.”

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