As one of the best leaders in the history of cricket, MS Dhoni has said that he is in the ‘last phase’ of his career. Although it is unknown if the captain of the Chennai Super Kings would participate in the Indian Premier League for next season, other cricketers have been paying respect to the “Thala.”
Royal Challengers Bangalore captain Faf du Plessis, who played for the Chennai franchise for the most of his IPL tenure, has nothing but admiration for the CSK captain in an exclusive interview.
Du Plessis claimed that he was fortunate to have received learnings from powerful figures like Graeme Smith, Stephen Fleming, and MS Dhoni.
#NDTVExclusive | 'I Learnt To Be Captain Cool Like Dhoni'- Faf Du Plessis (@faf1307) pic.twitter.com/I2JoMGsS3E
— NDTV (@ndtv) May 17, 2023
“I was really fortunate to play alongside leaders that I could learn from. Graeme Smith served as captain when I played for South Africa, and after relocating to Chennai, my only goal for the season was to learn. However, I didn’t play a single game that year. I would be questioning Stephen Fleming when we were sitting side by side. More questions on leadership than he had anticipated hearing, he said.
Faf’s first season with CSK didn’t provide him a lot of playing time. While the South African was anxious to probe Fleming’s brain, he also kept a close watch on Dhoni and how he managed his squad.
I was only keeping an eye on MS from a distance. I was trying to figure out from my eyes and experience why and how he is so effective. One of the most successful domestic and international captains in cricket even at that point. Being able to learn from someone of that calibre was an honour.
The significance of being the leader that you are, though, was something else that I believe I learned very early on. I could never captain like MS or Virat or Graeme Smith or Stephen Fleming. I go my own path, but you may observe and borrow ideas from others, he said.
