The metamorphosis of Dhoni's batting style

This crazy avatar is mostly history … save the odd HELICOPTER or two …

We all know that captain M.S.Dhoni has changed his batting style ever since he took over the captaincy. It is well documented and much discussed. He has apparently done this to take on a more responsible stand in keeping with his status as the team’s captain. This piece is strictly about M.S.Dhoni – the ultimate Indian ODI middle-order batsman

So, a few yrs back, we were used to seeing absolute rockets from MSD’s blade in super pacy innings. His best innings – the 183 against the Lankans, the 148 against the Pakis etc. were achieved through plain and simple ball bashing. Those long locks went beautifully with this batting style and he was the new darling of the Sachin-obsessed Indian crowd in no time.

But since taking over the captaincy, the typical MSD knocks have read 50 off 65 balls, 30 off 45 balls etc. He has not made many big 100s for he bats at 5 or 6. He will start off slowly and surely up the ante and finish off with more than a flourish. This style has made him among the very best consolidators and finishers in the ODI scene. And the crowing glory moment, the 91* in the final of the CWC was constructed in the style mentioned above. And his career numbers are among the best ever and rivaled by very few

191 matches, 171 innings, 44 not outs, 6285 runs, 183* highest, 49.48 average, 7151 runs, 87.88 strike rate, 7 100s, 41 50s

Such numbers have been achieved only by the likes of Michael Bevan and Michael Hussey, 2 other middle order specialists who can be trusted upon with our lives.

Now, there is also one minor blip to this approach. Before, Dhoni knew to bat only in one style and he did that like none other in the business. When he competed with the likes of Afridi, Jayasuriya, Gilchrist for the mantle of the most destructive batsman in the game, he more than held his own.

But, now as he competes with the likes of other finishers and supremely consistent batters like Hussey and yesteryear Bevan, Dhoni doesn’t exactly win this comparison. There is one reason – From time to time, he gets into inexplicable ruts from which he finds it really difficult to break loose. I am talking about knocks like 7 off 22 balls, 11 off 30 balls etc. etc. He comes up with such disasters once in awhile with real predictability in both the limited overs formats. The latest was the recent T20 match in the Nokia Champions League T20, against Trinidad and Tobago when he made a dubious 7 off 22 balls.

The mellowed down version 2.0

All this happens due to the clash between his natural predatory instincts and the urge to play responsible captain’s innings. That too in the early stages of his knock, he deliberately blocks and wastes easy scoring opportunities. He more often than not, gets over these initial hiccups and manages almost a run a ball by the end of his inning. But, on his off days, it is a different scene and knocks like 11 off 30 balls keep coming. This is one thing that he needs to get over with, as he approaches the peak of his batting career at 30.

There have been aggressive slam-bangers like Viv Richards, Ian Botham and Kapil Dev who have also captained their respective sides during their times. But, they didn’t give up their natural flair and the aggressive instinct. In fact, Sir Viv Richards is considered very highly in both the captaincy and batting debates.

Dhoni now needs to start being more positive in the early stages of his inning and not get bogged down. Agreed, he can’t bat like the yesteryear Dhoni or the contemporary Sehwag because he is the middle order rock and the bulwark around whom the ODI team revolves. This responsible avatar suits the need and times well. He was after all, the Man of the Series in the 0-3 loss in England just a month back. With more ODIs around the corner against the Pommies, we need MSD at the peak of his powers as always.

Just some positivity in the early stages of his knock will make sure that the terribly slow disasters like 11 off 30 and 7 off 22 don’t happen … The stunningly original Indian version of Michael Bevan will grow from strength to strength in the coming years, if he makes this minor tweak in the way he structures his inning.