Parthiv Patel said of MS Dhoni’s outstanding catch to remove Vijay Shankar, “It looked like we were watching 22-year-old Dhoni again.”

In the second match of the IPL 2024, the Chennai Super Kings defeated the Gujarat Titans by a margin of 63 runs on Tuesday at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. JioCinema IPL gurus Parthiv Patel and AB de Villiers discussed the outstanding fielding efforts of Ajinkya Rahane and MS Dhoni, as well as Shivam Dube’s (51 runs) ongoing batting prowess, exclusively on Match Centre Live. Take a peek:

Regarding the criticism of Shivam Dube, AB de Villiers said, “It’s great to see Shivam this way.” In the RCB changing room, he never fully broke free. Once upon a time, he was an extremely inquisitive, hardworking, and shy man. Though he never felt at ease, I believe he learned a little there. He speaks of freedom in CSK, and that’s the secret sauce that MSD, Gaikwad, Stephen Fleming, and all the other old boys put in place over there. With fresh players who feel free to express themselves, it’s a workhorse of a franchise that really keeps things going strong every season.

Speaking about MS Dhoni’s wicketkeeping performance that forced Vijay Shankar out, Parthiv Patel said:

He’s never practiced wicketkeeping, that I know of. The distance he travelled is the only noteworthy thing we can observe here. While many wicketkeepers tend to dive towards the leg side in their first action, MS Dhoni may dive up to two metres in the same direction every time. We appeared to be witnessing a 22-year-old Dhoni once more. It is necessary to give him credit.

Also read: Shubman Gill faces fines in IPL 2024 for continuing to play slowly against CSK

This technical point should be taught to many novice wicketkeepers. You cannot go as far on the off-side as you can when you move to the leg side with just one leg. Dhoni rarely needs to dive for the ball because his anticipation is superb and he covers the distance. His ability to anticipate correctly allows him to cover the ball well.

Remarkably, Ajinkya Rahane caught David Miller. The most difficult catches occur when you have to lunge forward when fielding in the deep. Rahane can make some incredible catches, as we have already witnessed. He fits the definition of an all-around fielder. He has made some incredible catches for India in the slips in the past. David Miller’s hitting zone is deep mid-wicket, which is a challenging position for him to be in, yet he made an amazing catch today.