"You can never count out CSK and MS Dhoni" - Parthiv Patel
Parthiv Patel has said the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and MS Dhoni can never be discounted.
CSK come into IPL 2021 on the back of a rather dismal run in the last edition of the league, having failed to qualify for the playoffs for the first time in their history. With all matches scheduled to be played at neutral venues, the MS Dhoni-led side will also not get the chance to play at the Chepauk, their happy hunting ground.
During a discussion on Star Sports, Parthiv Patel was asked how he sees CSK's preparations and if them not getting to play at home would be a disadvantage.
The former CSK player responded by saying that the other teams can take the franchise and MS Dhoni lightly at their own peril.
"CSK is a team you cannot count out and even above that is the team's captain MS Dhoni, you can never count him out as well. T20 is a format where the captain plays a huge role because you have to take decisions on the spot," said Patel.
The newest member of the Mumbai Indians scouting team highlighted that MS Dhoni is known to make the right decisions in crunch situations.
"However much planning you might do but if a batsman comes and scores 30 runs off two overs, all your planning fails. MS Dhoni's speciality is to take correct decisions in such situations," added Patel.
MS Dhoni's cool and calculative approach has made him one of the most successful captains for India as well as in the IPL. The Chennai Super Kings will hope that his magic works in IPL 2021, which could be his final hurrah for the franchise.
Parthiv Patel lauds MS Dhoni's handling of the CSK team
While observing that CSK's early exit last year was an aberration, Parthiv Patel spoke in glowing terms about MS Dhoni's management skills.
"If we talk about their comeback after two years, they won the IPL that year and after that almost won, lost on the last ball and then also people were questioning the team, that it is a Dad's Army and all. But the way he manages the team and the way he performs, the campaign may not have been good last year but they have been playing for thirteen years and sometime or the other an odd year can happen like that," said Patel.
While acknowledging that Moeen Ali and Krishnappa Gowtham would have been great assets on the spin-friendly Chennai track, the 36-year-old signed off by stating that MS Dhoni will extract the best from the options available.
"This team's practice and the new players they have got, there will be a question how they will play Moeen Ali and Gowtham in Mumbai. If they had been in Chennai, Moeen Ali and Gowtham would have been great selections but all those things are now over. MS Dhoni and the CSK management will only think about getting the best from the available resources and no one knows that better than MS Dhoni," concluded Patel.
The Chennai Super Kings will be playing their league matches in Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, and Kolkata. Only the track at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi is likely to assist their spinners, with the other three pitches expected to favour the batsmen and the seam bowlers.