MS Dhoni vs Bhuvneshwar Kumar in IPL: Decoding the stats
Match 29 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 will see Chennai Super Kings take on Sunrisers Hyderabad at Chennai's MA Chidambaram Stadium on April 21. Both teams have played five games so far with CSK and SRH winning three and two apiece. MS Dhoni's battle with Bhuvneshwar Kumar will be to watch out for in the contest. Here we decode their rivalry.
How have the two fared against each other?
Dhoni's big-hitting prowess has troubled Bhuvneshwar in the past as the dasher owns 94 runs off 57 deliveries against him in IPL. The pacer could not dismiss Dhoni even once in 11 meetings. As the CSK skipper bats lower down the order, the duo has mostly met in death overs. Dhoni's strike rate against Bhuvneshwar goes up to 186 in the last four overs.
Key numbers in the slog overs
Bhuvneshwar's tally of 78 wickets in overs between 17 to 20 are only third to Dwayne Bravo (102) and Lasith Malinga (90) in IPL history. He concedes runs at 9.19 in this phase. Meanwhile, Dhoni has been a nightmare for the bowling side in these overs. The veteran has a strike rate of 187.87 in the last four overs, accumulating 2,587 runs.
Their numbers at Chepauk
Across 50 IPL innings at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, Dhoni has accumulated 1,407 runs (SR: 144.75). He has also been brilliant against SRH, scoring 488 runs at a strike rate of 145.23. Meanwhile, Bhuvneshwar has struggled in Chennai, scalping six wickets in eight games (ER: 7.8). Against CSK, he has only managed 11 wickets in 17 games though his economy reads just 6.79.
A look at their overall numbers
Dhoni, the seventh-highest run-getter in IPL history, has 5,037 runs in 239 IPL games at 39.35 (SR: 135.76). Though the veteran wicketkeeper-batter has faced just 28 balls this season, he has returned with 59 runs (SR: 210.71). With 158 wickets in 151 games, Bhuvneshwar is the joint-seventh-highest wicket-taker in IPL history. This season he has only managed four wickets in five outings (ER: 8.70).
