"If I tell him, I feel it will be a huge insult to him" - Shivam Dube on whether he ever asked MS Dhoni to give him a bowl in the IPL
Shivam Dube believes MS Dhoni is the best judge whether he should be given a bowl in the Indian Premier League (IPL).
Dube was one of the Chennai Super Kings' (CSK) star performers with the bat in IPL 2023, smashing 418 runs in 14 innings at a strike rate of 158.33. The all-rounder played as a specialist batter and wasn't used with the ball throughout the tournament.
During an interaction on the AakashVani show on JioCinema, Shivam Dube was asked whether the Impact Player rule didn't allow him to bowl in the IPL and if he ever asked Dhoni to give him the ball, to which he responded:
"If I talk about the CSK team, the sixth option itself was Moeen Ali. I come as the seventh option, so it's only if it's very much required. That is one thing because of the Impact Player rule. I am trying to make myself better so that I can contribute one or two overs for the team."
The Mumbai player added:
"If I tell him (Dhoni), I feel it will be a huge insult to him. He knows when to bowl me. He just asks you to keep playing and not to take tension. When I started bowling, he said that my bowling had improved from last year."
Dube stated that Dhoni told him that he was unable to bowl him based on the situation and the team's requirements. He added that the CSK skipper always tells him that his graph will move up gradually.
"My thinking is always that I have to play for the Indian team" - Shivam Dube on his goals
Aakash Chopra also asked Shivam Dube about his goals, to which he replied:
"My thinking is always that I have to play for the Indian team and do something for the country. It is always in my mind that if I am good I can win the World Cup for my country."
The 30-year-old added that he is working to regain his place in a full-strength Indian side. He said:
"However, I need to do a lot of things for that. So my focus is on those things. The goal at the back of my mind is that I have to play for India. It is 100% a goal and I feel the direction in which I am going, it is getting closer."
Dube played both T20Is in India's recent tour of Ireland. He is also part of the Indian contingent for the upcoming Asian Games and will hope to give match-defining performances to stake a claim in the Men in Blue's squad for next year's T20 World Cup.