There is an old but popular saying in the game of baseball that “it ain’t over till the fat lady sings”, alluding to an old female fan who starts crooning once the match finishes. The saying came true on October 9 in Sharjah stadium for a different game when Mahendra Singh Dhoni of Chennai Super Kings hit his trademark shot over the fence off Tom Curran of Delhi Capitals to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. Almost everyone who mattered was busy making post-retirement plans for the Jharkhand dasher but the unbeaten knock of 18 proved yet again that any ill-founded speculation on the future of the “ultimate finisher” in the world cricket can only be termed gibberish as long as Dhoni is at the batting crease. The innings reminded everyone of the majestic knocks that characterised Mahi in the IPL for over a decade. Hence, the timing could not be more appropriate to rewind to the times when “the boy from Jharkhand” produced some awe-inspiring moments in various IPL seasons.
Shredding Pathan To Pieces (2010 VS KXIP)
This knock was quintessentially Dhoni that put him in a league of his own. Punjab scored a fighting 193 after batting first and it is never easy to chase such a total under lights but with “the new finisher” in the world of cricket nothing’s out of reach, even a total of 400 can be overhauled. Needing 16 off the last over bowled by Irfan Pathan, Dhoni sealed the match in Chennai’s favour by dispatching two deliveries over the fence and one towards it. In the end, he remained unbeaten on 54 from 29 balls and Punjab was unable to figure out as to what transpired in the space of the last six balls.
Axar Patel bears the Brunt of Mahi’s Willow (2016 VS KXIP)
This knock of 64 not out from 49 deliveries came at a time when Dhoni played for a new franchise, Rising Pune Supergiants due to some unsavoury happenings in the IPL 2013 edition. This was a rare good match for the new franchise, which endured a sub-optimal outing in that year. However, with 23 runs needing from the last over in pursuit of 173 the game could have been all but over for any other batter but not for Dhoni. In an exhilarating display of power-hitting, Mahi polished off the required runs off the bowling of a hapless Axar Patel.
Bengaluru reduced to mere spectators (2018 VS RCB)
Chasing a score in excess of 200 involves a lot of heavy weight lifting and even the best efforts would fall short, 9 out of 10 times. However, with Dhoni at the crease, the 206 posted by the RCB looked very much in the realm of certainty, so the 45 off 18 balls never looked impossible for Chennai. In his inimitable style, Mahi ended the match with a six of Mohammed Siraj, however, apart from the young Hyderabadi bowler Corey Anderson also got a taste of Mahi’s medicine en route to MDS’s 70 off 34 balls.
Timely Knock To Remind “It Ain’t Over” (2019 VS RR)
This innings of 75 off 46 was significant to prove the naysayers wrong that neither big hits nor form has deserted Dhoni’s willow. Though not in the pink of his batting health, Mahi proved yet again that it (career) can be over only if he decides to pull the plug at a time chosen by him. At 27 for 3, the match was heavily in favour of the Royals, but Dhoni provided a fine tutorial during the occasion on how to build an innings on a sluggish pitch and anchor the chase in adverse scenarios. Royals tried their best but had no answer to MSD’s doggedness and street smartness, which helped him blast four sixes while pursuing the target of 167.
