Veteran India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin revealed the advice Mahendra Singh Dhoni has been giving him for the past 15 years. Dhoni, one of the most successful captains in world cricket, is considered among the best readers of the game. The legendary wicketkeeper batter often shared his insights with the bowlers, which has helped them improve their game. Several players, including Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav, have admitted that Dhoni’s tips from behind the stumps have helped them improve their game.
Meanwhile, Ashwin has now revealed that Dhoni has been giving him the same advice over the years, which is to continue to be ‘funky’.
“He (Dhoni) always said, ‘Your greatest strength is to try new things, to be funky. So, do not change that for anybody else.’ I met him in Dubai after a game between Delhi against CSK and I asked him, ‘How you find it? I have developed that back spin.’ He said, ‘You are always like that. It has been your strength. Remember, you continue to be funky. Remember, you continue to work on your variations’. I was like, this was what he told me 15 years ago,” Ashwin told RevzSports.
Ashwin, who recently completed 600 Test wickets, started his international career under Dhoni’s captaincy and won the 2011 ODI World Cup and 2013 Champions Trophy alongside him.
The ace spinner said that Dhoni continued to see the same thing in the players over the years.
“The man continued to see the same thing. And then like after a brief pause, he told me again, ‘you know what, I know what you are thinking but that is your strength. So, keep being funky, keep expressing yourself’,” Ashwin added.
Ashwin further pointed out Dhoni also took note of the mental aptitude of the players and helped them improve their game while referring to the improved show of Tushar Deshapande in the recent times.
“Maybe it is not just the cricket that he sees. He sees, more sort of a mental strength side of things, or the mental aptitude side of things. And I find that he did that with Tushar Deshpande also for CSK. So, he continues to do that. He continues to pick people who are good in certain roles and fitting them in,” he added.