The match between Chennai Super Kings and Delhi Daredevils turned out to be a one-sided competition as MS Dhoni’s men outplayed Virender Sehwag’s team in every department. Both CSK and DD had the firepower in their team that could have won them the match and it was expected that the match will go down to the wire.

It was a battle between the captains as well as there have been some controversies surrounding the two in the recent past. Sehwag and Dhoni have different styles of captaining the side and both the players would have looked to outsmart the other.

After the match one will have to admit that MS Dhoni handled his troops far better and emerged victorious in every department.

Let’s have a look at some of the reasons why Dhoni looked a better captain out of the two. 

Faith on players: Murali Vijay has been a prolific run-scorer for CSK in IPLs but this season he suffered big time. He played some very ordinary shots in the early stage of the competition and lost his place in the side. Dhoni however, knew that the talented right-hander is too good to be left out and his faith paid out as Vijay hit a match winning 100. Dhoni believes in his players and that is the reason why he has been so successful.

Team combination: In a match like this, a captain should field his best players and Dhoni did exactly that, he played the team that has seen it all and has the experience of playing at big stages. Sehwag did exactly the opposite. He dropped Morne Morkel, the leading wicket taker of the series. Sehwag in the absence of Pathan wanted an all-rounder and thus played Andre Rusell in place of Morkel, who has won them many matches. Even Sehwag after the match admitted that they missed the tall South African.

Positive attitude: Sehwag strengthen his batting and still opted to bowl first. The difference between the two captains is that Dhoni has been promoting himself up the order and is taking extra responsibility.  on the other hand dropped himself to number three trying to avoid Ben Hilfenhaus. It sends a wrong signal if a captain is hiding himself.

Crumbling under pressure: Sehwag looked lost when Vijay took the attack on the Delhi bowlers and his body language suggested that. It was looking as though he was just waiting for the innings to get over. Dhoni on the other hand was calm even when Jayawardene started hitting boundaries. He bowled Hilfenhaus and Albie Morkel one extra over and that paid rich dividends.

By Gaurav Jha
Indian Sports News