NEW DELHI: Whenever India competes in any international match, there’s always excitement and enthusiasm among players and fans. Cricketers put their bodies on the line to save every run or take an extra single. Whether it’s facing a yorker delivery above 140 km/h or pulling a short ball in front of their eyes, cricketers tend to give their best for their country when wearing their national colours.
Since Virat Kohli took on the role of captaincy, he introduced a new culture in the Test team.The team no longer wanted to play for a draw; the focus was always on winning the match. This mindset was strongly supported by Ravi Shastri, the head coach at the time. However, in one particular match, this approach was not seen in a moment when MS Dhoni scored his 10,000th ODI run.
It was the second ODI match of India tour of England in 2018. England batted first, Joe Root scored a century and led the team total to 322/7.
At Lord’s, one of the most iconic grounds and the home of English cricket, MS Dhoni reached this significant milestone. The moment was met with a muted response, even from his own team’s dressing room, which seemed unusually sombre.
When Dhoni arrived at the crease following Virat Kohli’s wicket, India needed 183 runs from 23 overs, with the required run rate just shy of eight per over. However, during Dhoni’s 20-over stay at the crease, which ended with his dismissal for 37 off 59 balls, India only managed to add 75 runs, resulting in the required rate nearly doubling.
India struggled to score more than 10 runs in a single over during the last 15 overs, with overs 40 to 50 yielding a paltry 42 runs. Furthermore, it was the first time since the 2011 World Cup semi-final that India failed to hit a six in an ODI match.
Shortly after, Dhoni faced boos as India’s run rate nearly ground to a halt in the final 10 overs, following the collapse of the chase for 323 runs.
A Classy Root Hundred & Willey Fireworks! | Classic ODI | Eng v India 2018 | Lord’s
This incident left the head coach enraged, as it did not align with the team culture he aimed to cultivate.
As per the autobiography of former fielding coach R Sridhar, titled ‘Coaching Beyond: My Days with the Indian Cricket Team,’ Shastri was furious with Dhoni’s approach after his lackluster performance during the chase.
The coach’s frustration stemmed not so much from the defeat or the margin, but rather from his clear stance that Dhoni needed to accelerate the innings in response to the situation at hand.
Sridhar wrote, “Uncharacteristically, he (Dhoni) shut shop, and even though our required rate in the last 10 was nearly 13 an over, we only managed some 20 runs in the next six overs. That was the innings when MS got to 10,000 ODI runs, a very significant milestone. We were all thrilled for him, but we also wanted to know why he hadn’t made even a token attempt at the target.”
Ravi Shastri expressed his frustration during the team meeting ahead of the decisive final ODI. Though he did not name anyone, his words were directed at a senior batter as he maintained eye contact throughout and warned, “No matter who you may be, there should not be another occasion when we lose a match not trying to win it. It will not happen under my watch. And if anyone does it, that will be the last bloody game of cricket they will play under my watch. You can lose a cricket game, no shame in that, but you will not lose like this,” Shastri further added.
In reply, Dhoni, doing justice to his reputation, remained calm and digested all. Sridhar explained in detail, “MS was sitting right there in the front, and while Ravi’s words were meant for the team, his eyes were trained on MS. To the former skipper’s great credit, he didn’t flinch, he never broke eye contact with Ravi. He didn’t look here and there or fidget because one of his many admirable qualities is his ability to take the knocks, especially when he knows in his heart of hearts that he deserves them.”