"It would have been an iconic innings" - Aakash Chopra's stunning take on MS Dhoni's 2019 World Cup semifinal knock against New Zealand

Former India cricketer Aakash Chopra has made a strong statement regarding MS Dhoni’s 72-ball 50-run knock in the 2019 ODI World Cup semi-final against New Zealand in Manchester. Opting to bat first, the Black Caps posted 239/8, before India stumbled early in the chase, losing four wickets for just 24 runs within the first 10 overs.

Dhoni came in to bat at No. 7 and, along with No. 8 batter Ravindra Jadeja (77 off 59), added a crucial 116-run stand for the seventh wicket. However, Dhoni was run out for 50 off 72 balls in the penultimate over when India needed 24 runs off nine balls, as the Men in Blue eventually fell short by 18 runs.

Since that match, Dhoni has often faced criticism from fans for his slow approach. Speaking on The Raunac Podcast on YouTube, released on Thursday, November 13, Chopra shared his perspective on the former India captain’s innings.

The 48-year-old opined that had Dhoni found a couple more boundaries, the innings would have been hailed as heroic if India had won. He also pointed out that the team management made a tactical mistake by sending MS Dhoni too low in the batting order that day. He said:

“See, when it comes to doing something, as many mouths, that many opinions. But your response to a pressure situation has to be something that comes from what you’ve worked hard on since childhood. Because anything you do apart from that has a very high failure rate. So that understanding of his that day, and he almost finished the match, he had nearly taken the team there. If just those two shots had connected, it would’ve been another game altogether. I mean, he would’ve won that match. It would have been an iconic innings.” “I think that day his batting order should have been a little higher. They sent him too low down. I think that was one mistake, a tactical error that India made. And if you criticize his way of playing, then you can’t celebrate his finishing ability. Both can’t go together. Because then you’ll become result oriented, if he wins you praise, if not you criticize," he added.

Chopra continued:

"Meaning, you’ll keep swinging between clapping and abusing. What kind of logic is that? If you clap because that’s his style of play, then it’s also possible that once in a while, it won’t work. But what’s the percentage? The percentage is that Dhoni has won far more matches. If one or two times he couldn’t finish, then he couldn’t, yaar, it happens. It happens with everyone."

Meanwhile, the match turned out to be MS Dhoni’s final appearance for India before he announced his retirement from international cricket on August 15, 2020.

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MS Dhoni scored over 17,000 international runs for India

MS Dhoni made his ODI debut against Bangladesh in 2004 and went on to represent India in 350 matches in the format, amassing 10,773 runs at an average of 50.57 and a strike rate of 87.56, including 73 fifties and 10 centuries. He also featured in 98 T20Is, scoring 1,617 runs at an average of 37.60 and a strike rate of 126.13, with two half-centuries to his name.

In addition, MS Dhoni played 90 Tests, accumulating 4,876 runs at an average of 38.09, which included 33 fifties and six centuries. Overall, across formats, he appeared in 535 matches for India, scoring 17,092 runs at an average of 44.74, with 108 fifties and 16 centuries to his credit.

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Edited by Dev Sharma