MS Dhoni has often been described as a cricketing enigma. During his successful tenure as captain, neither fans nor cricket experts could fathom how he arrived at some of the most important decisions on the field.
The wicketkeeper-batsman rarely speaks to the media and isn’t exactly social-media savvy.
In a sense, the good old stump mic has become the only source for fans to get a peek inside Mahi’s head.
The second ODI between India and New Zealand in Pune offered fans another chance to gauge Dhoni’s cricketing acumen when the stump mic picked up some interesting tidbits.
“Cheeku, do-teen jan ko idhar chhor de (Cheeku, keep 2-3 fielders here),” Dhoni was heard telling the Indian captain Virat Kohli as Kedar Jadhav bowled.
Dhoni was also heard asking Kohli whether he should re-set the field.
“Cheeku, ek ball aur rakhegaa, (Cheeku, will you keep it for a delivery more). Ek ball jo pehle rakhaa tha mein catch ke liye (A delivery ago as I had placed it for a catch).”
“Ye ball acha hai iske (for Latham) liye beech beech me har teesra ball ek dal sakta hai. Bahut badhiya, Kedu (Kedar).
When Kedar was bowling to Nicholls, Dhoni promoted, “Bahut badhiya, theek hai dalta reh, ek baar karengey phir dimag me ghusta hai, dalte hi rehna.”
Here’s the video of MS Dhoni’s gem to Team India: