MS Dhoni always approachable, initially did not speak much to him: Ishant Sharma

Veteran Indian fast bowler Ishant Sharma made his international debut in 2007 under the leadership of Rahul Dravid. However, Sharma’s arrival also coincided with the start of MS Dhoni’s 9-year reign as captain of the Indian team. Since his debut, the right-arm fast bowler has played 97 Tests, 80 ODIs and 14 T20Is and he continues to remain one of the mainstays of India’s Test bowling line-up alongside Mohammad Shami and Jasprit Bumrah.

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Ishant Sharma opens up about playing alongside MS Dhoni

Ishant Sharma recently appeared on Star Sports’ Show Cricket Connected. In the show, he spoke about how he used to interact with wicketkeeper-batsman MS Dhoni earlier in his career. Ishant Sharma stated that his interaction with MS Dhoni was initially limited and it was only after 2013 that he started talking more frequently with the then Indian captain.

After talking and understanding MS Dhoni, the pacer revealed that the veteran cricketer has a cool personality and he interacts nicely with the youngsters of the team. According to Ishant Sharma, the 2011 World Cup-winning captain never minds when his teammates visit him in his room. He revealed that his fellow fast bowling teammate Mohammad Shami is one such player who visits MS Dhoni’s room the most. Ishant Sharma later praised the former Indian captain by saying that one can learn a lot of things from him, be it about cricket or life.

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MS Dhoni relinquished captaincy from all formats of the game in 2016, thus allowing Virat Kohli to take Indian cricket forward. Ishant Sharma seems to enjoy playing alongside Virat Kohli as his bowling statistics have significantly improved under the leadership of his Delhi teammate. Ever since the prolific run-scorer took over as captain, the pacer has picked up 75 Test wickets at an average of 23.58, in comparison to his overall Test average of 32.39.

MS Dhoni birthday and return to cricket updates

The MS Dhoni birthday falls on the following Tuesday and he will turn 39 this year. On the cricketing front, he has been on a sabbatical from the sport since the 2019 World Cup in England. While MS Dhoni was set to return playing top-flight cricket through the Indian Premier League 2020 (IPL 2020) season, the ongoing coronavirus pandemic prompted the Indian board to indefinitely postpone the tournament.

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Image credits: AP