Indian Premier League: MS Dhoni averages 29.94 against leg-spinners
What's the story
Mahendra Singh Dhoni will return to lead Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL), starting March 31.
It will likely be the last dance for the legendary wicketkeeper-batter, who has led CSK to four titles.
Therefore, Dhoni would want to bat freely and unleash his beast mode.
However, the leg-spinners could disrupt his rhythm, as has been the case previously.
Context
Why does this story matter?
When on song, Dhoni hammers the greatest of bowlers, especially in the death overs.
However, he often gets outfoxed by the spinners. The CSK skipper struggles to rotate the strike in the middle overs when facing spinners.
Moreover, he has a strike rate of just 105.56 against leg-spinners.
Dhoni will face Rashid Khan as CSK takes on Gujarat Titans in the IPL 2023 opener.
Leg-spinners
Leg-spinners have dismissed Dhoni 19 times
Leg-spinners have dismissed Dhoni 19 times in the IPL.
The CSK skipper has racked up 569 runs at an average of 29.94 against them so far. The tally includes 28 fours and 26 sixes.
As stated, his strike rate against leg spin is 105.56.
As of now, Dhoni has faced 539 balls off leg spin. Interestingly, 229 of these were dot balls.
Do you know?
Dhoni struggles in middle overs
Dhoni's IPL strike rate comes down to 96.94 when facing leg-spinners in the middle overs (7-16). He has fallen to them 12 times in this phase. However, his average climbs to 37.08 in this regard (445 runs).
Information
Dhoni's overall numbers against spinners since 2016
Since the start of the 2016 IPL edition, Dhoni has managed 619 runs against spinners at a strike rate of 101.06. They have dismissed the veteran batter 19 times in this phase. Dhoni averages 35.10 in this regard.
Weakness
Dhoni has been under the scanner
Clearly, Dhoni has been under the scanner while playing spin in the IPL.
Owing to his unorthodox batting technique, Dhoni hasn't been able to find gaps and rotate the strike consistently.
Since 2019, he has a strike rate of just 91.89 against spinners.
Every time Dhoni walks out to bat, the opposition switches to spinners with an attacking field.
Clash
Dhoni set to face Rashid Khan
On March 31, Dhoni will face perhaps the greatest leg-spinner in T20 cricket, Rashid Khan.
The latter has scored just 24 runs off 35 balls against the Afghan spinner in the IPL.
However, Rashid has managed to dismiss Dhoni just once.
Only time will tell who comes out on top in the much-awaited tournament opener between CSK and GT.
5,000 runs
Dhoni eyes 5,000-run mark
So far in the IPL, Dhoni, the former Indian skipper, has racked up 4,978 runs at an average of 39.19.
He has slammed 23 fifties with the best score of 84*. Dhoni also has a strike rate of 135.19.
Notably, MSD is 22 shy of reaching the milestone of 5,000 IPL runs.
To date, only six players have unlocked this achievement to date.