“For him, it’s always about who finishes the game properly” – Ravichandran Ashwin shares MS Dhoni's favorite part of playing ODIs
Ace Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin recently shared words of wisdom from former captain MS Dhoni regarding ODIs.
The 36-year-old pointed out that the format offers ebbs and flows, which makes it worth playing. He recalled that Dhoni loved the ODI format because it allowed the teams to both absorb and put the pressure back on the opponent. The veteran spinner stressed that the role of a finisher was very dear to Dhoni.
Ashwin said on his YouTube channel:
“(Dhoni on ODIs) MS Dhoni told me one day, 'I feel bad for one-day cricket, Ash.' Because ODI is his most-favorite format. I asked him, 'Why, Mahi Bhai?'. He replied, 'The beauty of this format is that there will be pressure, we will absorb the pressure and then we will start putting pressure on the opponent. In the end, we will see who finishes the game properly.'"
He continued:
"For him, it’s always about, ‘who finishes the game properly’ given the master that he was.”
The statement comes as India are grooming KL Rahul and Ishan Kishan for the finisher’s role ahead of the 2023 World Cup in India.
The middle-order batters recently stepped up in the Asia Cup 2023 games. Kishan scored 82 off 81 balls after India were reduced to 66/4 against Pakistan in the group stage. Rahul, on the other hand, smashed 111* off 106 deliveries against the same team in the Super 4 stage of the continental tournament.
The duo, though, failed to finish off the game against Sri Lanka, where Kishan scored 33 off 61 while Rahul scored 39 off 44.
Ravichandran Ashwin picks India as the favorites for 2023 ODI World Cup at home
Ravichandran Ashwin, meanwhile, picked India as the favorites for the 2023 ODI World Cup at home. The veteran stressed that bigger grounds will aid the spinners. He added that the top order of Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill have finesse while Virat Kohli and KL Rahul have both finesse and finishing abilities, which will be an advantage for the Men in Blue.
On this, Ashwin said:
“(India in ODIs) I always think to myself, 'This is our strength, guys. Why do you want to deviate from our strength?' I will explain about the deviating thing. Huge ground, slightly tougher conditions to bat. See, T20 cricket has changed the landscape of ODI cricket."
He continued:
"Flat wickets bridge the gap between high-quality batsmen and not-so-good batsmen. For example, power vs. finesse. Virat Kohli is more of a finesse. And he has the ability to finish games. KL Rahul is also finesse. He has also got the quality. Shubman Gill has also got unbelievable finesse. Rohit Sharma has got finesse.”
The Men in Blue will begin their World Cup campaign against Australia at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on October 8.
Click here to check out the full schedule of the 2023 ODI World Cup.