Albie Morkel says former Indian captain MS Dhoni is one of the best T20 and white-ball players ever to play the game.

Former South African all-rounder Albie Morkel said that MS Dhoni and stability have been the two big factors that have contributed to Chennai Super Kings (CSK) being one of the most successful teams in the Indian Premier League (IPL) thus far.

“He (Dhoni) plays a big role,” Morkel told SportStar. “We all know how big Dhoni is in India. He is one of the best T20 and white-ball players ever to play the game and if you get him as a leader, it is going to bring success as he knows how to get the best out of his players.”

Morkel retired from all forms of the game in January 2019 and is the third highest wicket-taker for CSK with 91 scalps.

CSK are known to have had players like Suresh Raina and Dwayne Bravo who have been with the team for a long time alongwith Dhoni and for their tendency to buy experienced players who may be considered past their prime.

“It all comes from keeping your core group of players together for a long time and have the same captain, Dhoni, for all seasons except for the two years when they weren’t part of the competition,” he said.

“Consistency is their secret. Over the last few seasons, they have made the finals eight times out of 10,” he added.

CSK were to play the Mumbai Indians in what was a repeat of last year’s final in the first match of the 2020 season of the IPL on March 29 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. However, the start of the season has been postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic that has gripped the country.

Meanwhile, the fate of the 13th edition of the IPL is also hanging in balance as public health is the priority. But in what comes as a huge boost for sports lovers, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) believes that it can still pull off the league if things come under control by April end and the first game is played by the first week of May.

Speaking to IANS, a BCCI official said that while it is presently very difficult to predict the fate of the IPL, the board can still conduct the league taking a cue from the pattern that was followed when the tournament was taken out to South Africa. But for that, the first match must be played by the the first week of May.

“The latest we can wait is till the end of April. If the first game isn’t played by the first week of May then it will be almost impossible to have the league this year. Even if we have to wait till end of April to follow all the procedures, we can take a cue from the South Africa edition and conduct the league successfully. If you remember, that was the shortest IPL with 59 games played over 37 days and we can do the same. But certain measures will have to be taken,” the official said.

Asked what he meant by measures, the official said that logistics would be an issue and so it would have to be ensured that the tournament is played in a state like Maharashtra as it has around four international stadiums available.
Agencies