“If you play till the end, he won’t bowl”

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) batter Shivam Dube hailed skipper MS Dhoni’s brilliance that helped the duo pull off a tight run chase against the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) on April 14. Chasing 167 for victory, CSK got into a tangle despite a fast start.

The Men in Yellow were 111/5 in 15 overs when Dhoni walked in and joined Dube at the crease. The pair added an unbeaten 57 off 27 deliveries to seal the deal with three balls to spare.

Dhoni finished unbeaten on 26 from 11 balls, while Dube scratched his way to a 37-ball 43*. Much of the discussion among fans and experts after the game was LSG not bowling Ravi Bishnoi for a final over despite the leg-spinner boasting impressive figures of 2/18 in three overs.

In a video shared by the CSK X handle, Dube revealed how Dhoni predicted Bishnoi not bowling his final over with the left-hander at the crease.

“Some things Mahi bhai told me – there was one over left for Bishnoi – so I was there in the end, because he told me that if you play till the end, he won’t bowl, so from our side, he was hitting the fast bowlers really well – and I used that as well,” said Dube [0:37].

The win helped CSK break a five-game losing streak and take them to four points after seven outings. However, the five-time champions are still at the bottom of the IPL 2025 points table.

“Why are they giving me the award?” – MS Dhoni after CSK’s win over LSG

MS Dhoni was surprised to be named the Player of the Match after CSK’s emphatic win over LSG. It was his first Player of the Match award since the 2019 season and 18th overall.

Apart from the blistering finishing gig with the bat, Dhoni also effected three dismissals behind the stumps in LSG’s batting innings.

Yet, at the post-match presentation, Dhoni asked (Via Cricbuzz):

“Even today I was like – “Why are they giving me the award?” Noor bowled really well.”

He continued:

“It’s good to win a game. When you play a tournament like this, you want to win games. Unfortunately the [earlier] matches didn’t go our way for whatever reasons. There can be lots of reasons. It’s good to have a win on our side. Gives confidence to the whole team and helps us improve in areas we want to improve. We all knew that when it doesn’t come your way in cricket, God makes it very tough, and it was a tough game.”

Despite predominantly batting in the final stages of the innings, Dhoni has displayed incredible ball-striking this season. The 43-year-old has scored 130 runs thus far in IPL 2025 at a strike rate of 158.53 in seven games.

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Venkatesh has been writing cricket news, listicle and feature articles for Sportskeeda for over a year. He loves cricket because of the diversity of the playing fields and its unparalleled nuances, which no other sport presents. He also enjoys the analytical and quantitative side of the sport, which originates from his MBA degree and 10 years of experience in the IT industry in companies like Infosys, Atos and TCS.

Venkatesh ensures proper research from reliable sources and social media trends to gather information, and adds his own dash of creativity to create insightful content.

He started watching cricket in the late 1990s, having been impressed with South Africa and New Zealand’s gentleman-like attitude. Domestically, he supports the Chennai Super Kings for their ability to bring the best out of their players owing to a friendly and conducive team environment.

He admires three cricketers the most – Brian Lara for his batting style, AB de Villiers for changing the paradigm of batting and MS Dhoni for his unique cerebral approach to field placings and batting. Along with cricket, Venkatesh also enjoys watching and playing tennis and basketball. In his free time, he finds pleasure in singing and watching movies and web series.

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Edited by Venkatesh Ravichandran