IPL 2023: MS Dhoni turns someone else's trash into treasure - Matthew Hayden on CSK Captain

Former Australian & CSK batter Matthew Hayden has described Mahendra Singh Dhoni as a "magician" who can transform someone else's "trash into treasure."

According to Hayden, Dhoni's remarkable contributions to the success of Chennai Super Kings (CSK) make his future with the franchise almost irrelevant.

Dhoni's tactical brilliance has played a crucial role in CSK's journey to their 10th IPL final. Despite not having the strongest bowling attack at the start of the tournament, he has managed to extract the best performances from his players.

His effective utilization of Ajinkya Rahane and Shivam Dube in the batting department has garnered widespread praise.

Although Dhoni, who has been playing with a knee injury, has given himself 8-9 months to decide on his playing future, Hayden believes that the World Cup-winning captain will not be part of the next IPL.

In a conversation with PTI, Hayden said, "MS is a magician. He can turn someone else's trash into treasure. He is a highly skilled and positive captain. He made an interesting comment that reflects his humility and his relationship with cricket, which is represented in the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association."

"The alignment between that association and the franchise, how strong that is in terms of building that process. To me, that is MS. There is a systematic way of going through things and working through them. He did that for India and he is doing it for Chennai Super Kings.

"Whether he plays or not next year it is almost irrelevant. Personally, I don't think he will but then he is MS Dhoni," he said at an event organized by the University of Technology Sydney (UTS).

Hayden believes that the era of players participating in all three formats of the game is coming to an end due to the rapid rise of T20 cricket worldwide. He also raises questions about the viability of the 50-over format.

"The time of three-format players is shortly coming to an end. I would challenge the game around whether those formats are even viable anymore. It seems to me there is great enthusiasm still to play Test cricket and World Test Championship is a good example of that. Otherwise, I see a lot of T20 cricket being played," he said.

He further emphasized that players cannot be blamed for opting out of national contracts to play in franchise cricket around the world. The allure of franchise cricket, along with the tremendous financial opportunities it offers, often leads players to make choices that prioritize their careers in shorter formats.

"It is inevitable that kids of tomorrow want to play sport, they want to play franchise cricket. We have seen a number of players, especially from marginalised communities, cricketers from the West Indies for example, they are getting very active in other sports and poached to other sports because of their magnificent athletic ability. The great fall from grace from the beautiful sides of the 80s."

"Someone like Nicholas Pooran for example. Has he really got any interest in playing Test match cricket? Before him Dwayne Bravo played a bit of Test cricket but mostly played franchise cricket all over the world," he added.

"There are hundreds of examples like that. From Australia, someone like David Warner. Is he going to be focussed on Test cricket now or is he going to play the remainder of his career (in T20s)? "It is always going to be challenging where there is an enormous amount of money to be made. It is going to happen and all of it should be embraced," Hayden concluded.

(With PTI inputs)

Also read: IPL 2023: 'He's always with me' - CSK captain MS Dhoni assures Pathirana's family