"I was confident of delivering yorkers" - Tushar Deshpande on how he and MS Dhoni plotted Rashid Khan's dismissal in Qualifier 1
Tushar Deshpande's rise as a death bowler was arguably one of the major factors why the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) were able to cope with some notable absentees in their bowling department. Deepak Chahar missed several games due to injury and Mukesh Choudhary was ruled out of the season.
This meant that Dhoni needed someone to bowl through all phases of the game, and Deshpande put his hand up. The Mumbai pacer picked up wickets upfront as well as at the death in some crucial moments. One such moment was when Deshpande dismissed Rashid Khan during Qualifier 1 against the Gujarat Titans (GT).
Rashid looked dangerous and was arguably standing between CSK and victory. However, in an exclusive chat with Sportskeeda, Tushar Deshpande explained how his ability to nail yorkers and MS Dhoni's expert field placement helped CSK pick up the big wicket and seal the win. He said:
"Dhoni bhai always says 'You know what went wrong today' (whenever the bowler was expensive). He always talks about keeping things simple and having a different plan in the mind. I was confident of delivering yorkers. He saw that I was bowling that well in so many games, so he placed that fielder there. He trusts his bowlers and trusts anyone who can execute the plan."
Deshpande also opened up on the expectations of fans and added:
"In sport, if you go wrong, your mistakes are seen in front of the world. We are humans, we aren't machines. So mistakes happen and in IPL, fans want their team to win and we also love the support of the fans. But they need to understand that sometimes we will win and sometimes we will lose. We always give our best."
Tushar Deshpande on talks about economy rate
Tushar Deshpande had an overall economy rate of 9.92 during the IPL 2023 season. However, it didn't matter as much as CSK got the wickets they needed from the pacer.
Deshpande spoke about how he doesn't let what people say affect his mindset. He stated:
"If you do 99 good things and 1 bad thing, people will remember only that 1 bad thing. Next season if I have an economy rate of 6, they will ask 'Where are the wickets?'. So I don't really think a lot about what people say because they don't know how hard I have worked to reach where I have."
There were also times when Tushar Deshpande was a bit too expensive, but he feels he always focused on what was ahead of him. It was his mental strength to make a strong comeback that helped him keep looking forward. He added:
"One bad ball, one bad over, one bad match doesn't make you a bad bowler. So if you hold onto past, you will spoil your future. In IPL, the games come thick and fast so you got to keep looking forward. In cricket, I have realized what you do now is what people remember. So my focus is always on the next ball. Obviously I do learn from the mistakes but the focus is always ahead."
If Tushar Deshpande continues to show this form, CSK will have a great chance to defend their title with a stronger and a more experienced bowling attack next season.