Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya praised MS Dhoni for his ability to read the game perfectly and said “there is a person behind the stumps” who tells the Chennai Super Kings what works for them in any game. After his team lost to CSK in IPL 2024 on Sunday, Hardik said MI performed well in the 207-run chase but Matheesha Pathirana’s impressive The four-wicket haul proved to be the turning point of the match as MI failed to reach the target to take a 20-run lead in the encounter.

“It (the goal) was definitely achievable but they batted pretty well. Pathirana was different. Their plan and approach was smart. They got the hang of it and there was a man behind the stumps ( Doni tells them what work is, and that helps.”

“It was about batting and keeping the intention. We were going well (in the run chase) until Patialana struck and took those two wickets. That was the best thing about that moment and we Can do some different things I like to play percentage cricket, it will be difficult for him (Dube) against seamers and not against spin, we are going to play good cricket in the next four games and need to keep the high Intensity,” he said after the game.

CSK captain Ruturaj Gaikwad also praised Dhoni’s explosive 4-ball 20 and said the “young keeper who scored those three sixes” helped them seal the victory.

“The young keeper scoring those three sixes helped us a lot and it proved to be the difference. At this kind of pitch, we needed an extra 10-15 runs. In the middle overs, Bumrah bowled really well. I felt we We were in the right position, even though they scored some great shots.”

Ruturaj also opened up about the decision to use Ajinkya Rahane as the opening batsman.

“In the powerplay, I would have scored 60 off 6 balls. In this venue, you need to be accurate in terms of bowling and batting. Our Malinga bowled very well today and he beat those yorkers. Don’t forget , Tushar and Shardul also performed well (about future plans) I think we need to keep it simple and encourage everyone to have a good mentality and continue in the same way, Jinx is a little troublesome, so I think it is good for us. It’s better for him. He can play well anywhere and that’s an added responsibility as captain,” he said.