IPL 2020: Irfan Pathan cautions bowlers to be wary of MS Dhoni
Former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan has warned all the bowling attacks in the Indian Premier League (IPL) to be careful of CSK skipper MS Dhoni. Pathan believes that the former Indian skipper will bat with the utmost freedom and will be as dangerous as he was in his early cricketing days.
The 35-year-old believes that MS Dhoni's decision to retire from international cricket has taken a huge burden off his shoulders and he will be absolutely fresh come the first game. He believes that if Dhoni gets into that attacking mode, it will be very difficult for bowlers to control him.
"All the bowlers, please watch out! Be careful when you are bowling against Mahendra Singh Dhoni. We might see the Dhoni that we saw before he became the (India) captain. Before he became the captain, he didn't have that extra responsibility, so he used to play freely," Irfan Pathan told TOI.
"As I say in Hindi, "Woh bebaak hoke khelega (he will play uninhibitedly). If that happens, the bowlers will lose control. So it's very difficult for bowlers to get going against Dhoni," Pathan further added.
MS Dhoni will be the player to watch out for in IPL 2020: Irfan Pathan
Irfan Pathan believes that MS Dhoni will be the player to watch out for in IPL 2020. MS Dhoni last played a competitive game in the 2019 World Cup semifinal defeat against New Zealand. Even though he hasn't played competitive cricket for 14 months, Pathan still beleives that he will be more than a handful for the bowlers and will be back to his fiery best.
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"Don't look at his age, don't look at the fact that he hasn't played cricket for so long. Don't look at all those things. He will be the player to watch out for this season and I am pretty certain as well that we might see Dhoni bludgeoning the bowlers and playing freely, the way he used to before he became the captain. I totally expect that," Irfan Pathan said.
Chennai Super Kings will look to avenge their defeat in the 2019 IPL final against the Mumbai Indians when they face off again on 19th September at Abu Dhabi.