"I have too much respect for him to celebrate when I get him out" - Harshal Patel on dismissing Dhoni for a golden duck in PBKS vs CSK IPL 2024 clashÂ
Punjab Kings (PBKS) pacer Harshal Patel spoke about dismissing MS Dhoni for a golden duck in the 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL) clash against the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in Dharamsala on Sunday. He became the first bowler to dismiss the legendary cricketer in the ongoing season.
Dhoni had come out to bat at No.9 in the penultimate over of the innings. The crowd had risen from their seats expecting yet another bright cameo like the ones he had produced this season. However, the wicketkeeper-batter was outfoxed by a brilliant slower delivery to find his off stump out of the ground.
Harshal Patel had already picked up Shardul Thakur's wicket earlier with a similar delivery that brought MS Dhoni to the crease in the first place. This marked the first time that Dhoni walked out to bat at No.9, and the third time being dismissed by Harshal Patel.
The right-arm pacer spoke about misreading the wicket and not celebrating despite dismissing Dhoni for a golden duck.
"Definitely bit on the drier side, we felt that and even when we hit on the hard length, it wasn't going as fast as we were bowling, it's not stopping but definitely a slower one," Harshal Patel told host broadcasters when asked about the pitch.
"I have too much respect for him to celebrate when I get him out. One of the advantages of day game is, the square is quite rough, when I came into bowl the first, the ball started reversing and it drifted away a bit and it made things harder for the batter. I was not really confident with those, initially I haven't been bowling for over a year but I've been working on it, there's no technique to it but when it comes out, it's good as the batters mostly don't pick it," Harshal Patel further stated on the dismissal and his overall performance.
MS Dhoni was dismissed for the first time this season when he was run out of the last ball of the innings during the reverse fixture against the Punjab Kings (PBKS) in Chennai.
Harshal Patel finished with figures of 3-24 to move level with No.1 ranked Jasprit Bumrah in the Purple Cap race
The right-arm pacer is having a fruitful maiden season with the Punjab Kings (PBKS) as he has finished wicket-less only twice across 11 matches. He had only bowled one over in PBKS' win over CSK in Chennai, conceding 12 runs and not picking up any wickets.
However, Harshal Patel made amends in the ongoing clash, starting with the controversial LBW of Daryl Mitchell and finishing with the twin strikes in the penultimate over.