South African pace bowler Lungi Ngidi has been on an upward trajectory in his career following successful performances for Chennai Super Kings in IPL 2021 and the bilateral series against India recently. Ngidi has credited his CSK skipper MS Dhoni for helping him learn and improve as a player.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni is among the greatest minds the sport of cricket has seen. His tactical genius and astute observations on the field make him a highly resourceful captain, and his players benefit from playing alongside him and learning from him immensely. Several cricketers, past and present, have showered praise on Dhoni for helping them grow in their careers.
South African pace sensation Ngidi has also joined the list. The 25-year-old was on song during the recent bilateral Test and ODI series against India and turned up with some incredible spells.
He recently shed light on the experience of playing in the Indian Premier League and how he has learned a lot from the CSK skipper.
“I think the main thing is just the control that he has over the team and on the field, he really does bring a sense of calm. I’ve also learnt a lot more in my time that I’ve been with CSK just under his captaincy in terms of field settings, game plans, and how to construct my bowling within an innings and I think from that moment it has really helped me grow as a cricketer”,
said Ngidi while speaking to Times Now.
The 25-year-old has been with the franchise since 2018 and has been a part of two title-winning journeys. He guided the team to win in his debut campaign as well as last season. Ngidi had missed the 2019 season due to a Grade II muscle strain where CSK were defeated by Mumbai Indians in the final.
Ngidi shared a story from the 2018 final against Sunrisers Hyderabad where MS Dhoni automatically changed the field during his spell, and it ended up working in CSK’s favour. Not only did it fetch two dot balls, it also resulted in a wicket.
“It was the final against the Sunrisers (Hyderabad) in 2018, we hadn’t discussed a certain field placement but he automatically just changed my field and with that field, within a couple of balls, we got a wicket to the fielder that he had moved. So, for me, that’s one thing that sticks out in my mind”,
he said.
