'Yeh toh phus patakha nikla': Navjot Sidhu unfiltered, cooks MS Dhoni on air during go-slow knock vs DC
Navjot Sidhu's remark came on air during Chennai's failed attempt to chase down 184 at home as they fell 25 runs short of the target.
Former India cricketer Navjot Singh Sidhu brutally roasted Chennai Super Kings' MS Dhoni on Saturday during the match against Delhi Capitals at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. His remark came on air during Chennai's failed attempt to chase down 184 at home as they fell 25 runs short of the target. This was Chennai's second consecutive loss at home this season.
It happened during the 14th over of the final innings when Dhoni was up against Mohit Sharma. The pacer bowled a wide yorker to Vijay Shankar as he drilled it to long-off for a single. However, he overstepped, implying Dhoni got a free-hit. Delhi captain Axar Patel placed a fielder each at long-on and long-off as commentator Jatin Sapru reckoned in Hindi commentary that an "an excellent contest" is on the cards with Mohit now an experienced bowler in crunch situations.
However, Sidhu discarded it, saying that Delhi, needing to defend 95 runs in 28 balls, are already in a winning position, and hence implied that Dhoni's only option was to hit a six on the free-hit delivery. Referring to the crowd that waited with bated breath for a boundary from Dhoni, Sidhu reckoned if he did pull it off, the spectators would go berserk.
"There is no contest here. It's a win-win situation. He has to go for sixes. If he doesn't go now then when will he? The required run rate is almost 15 now. Listen to the crowd, everyone is expecting a six. And if you live up to the expectation, then this stadium will explode," he said.
But much to the fans' disappointment, Dhoni failed to make contact with the ball as Mohit surprised him with a bouncer. The sight left Sidhu mercilessly trolling Dhoni.
“Oh...yeh toh phush patakha nikla. Khoda pahad nikli chuhiya,” he said.
Dhoni faces criticism, again
The former CSK captain was once again subject to criticism after a sluggish knock against Delhi. Walking out at No. 7, Dhoni failed to find any momentum during his 26-ball 30 as CSK lost the match by 25 runs, their third straight defeat.
Speaking to the press after the match, CSK coach Stephen Fleming said he did not see Dhoni coming in the 11th over as a damage limitation move and said batting at that stage was really tough.
"The intent was there. When he went out, I think the ball started to grip a little bit more. We understood it was going to be good for the first half and then gradually get slower. So, we were keen to bat and then take pace with the ball.
"They did it really well. Vijay Shankar struggled to get timings all the way through his innings. But that period from 12 to 16 overs was difficult for all. It was tough to watch and certainly tough to be out there. So the game was just slipping away, and even with intent and different methods to do it, it was just too big a scale," said Fleming.
