Former India cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni has been one of the most influential cricketers in the past decade. Dhoni not only won three ICC trophies for India as captain, he also led Chennai Super Kings to three Indian Premier League trophies. Dhoni’s influence among his players is measured from the fact that more than about his cricket, his teammates often talk about how Dhoni is as a person.
Former Chennai Super Kings batsman Sam Billings, in a recent interview, recalled how MS Dhoni helped him during his time with the franchise. Billings had withdrawn from IPL 2020, and will not be playing in the upcoming season.
“I absolutely loved my 2 years at CSK. The success in which the environment had consistently over the time is unmatched really, probably only Mumbai have been as consistent as CSK. To get a winners medal of the IPL is something that I really cherished,” Billings told Cricbuzz.
“For me, that experience from those great players… the overseas guys but also the homegrown Indian stars. I mean, no bigger star than MS Dhoni in terms of my role that I want to fulfill,” he added.
“There is no one better than MS to learn from. For me, it was great to pick his brains and enjoy the environment he has created,” he further said.
“He is a big Man United fan which really helps, as am I. He always invited me when there’s a few Man United fans around. So whenever the game was on, we used to go to his room and watch there. It was pretty cool just to talk about cricket and learn of him,” he added.
“And see how he goes about his business, whether it’s practice or games. For me, as well, my third year of captaincy at Kent, I think that’s the most incredible thing… how he talks to his players, especially the young players. They have the utmost respect and trust in him but he also trusts people and allows them to really thrive in the environment,” Billings further said.
The 2020 season of the IPL is due to start on the 19th of September after a suspension of around 6 months. In a virtual meeting on Sunday, the Governing Council decided the dates for the tournament with the final being played on the 10th of November, 2020. Owing to the grim Coronavirus situation in India, the decision has been taken to shift the tournament overseas with the matches being played in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah within the UAE. These decisions are subject to necessary clearances from the Government of India.
Another decision taken during this meeting was to retain Chinese sponsors including title sponsors, Vivo. This decision has been widely debated ever since owing to the confrontational border situation between India and China a few weeks ago.
