IPL 2022 | 'Pressure nahi lena, bass run mat dena, wicket ayega' - MS Dhoni's pep talk to Mukesh Choudhary

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) left-arm seamer Mukesh Choudhary is living his dream of playing alongside his childhood hero, legendary MS Dhoni.

After all, it was Dhoni's exploits against Sri Lanka in the 2011 ODI World Cup final that inspired the then 15-year-old young boy from Rajasthan to take up the sport.

"Whenever I see that winning six, I get goosebumps. The moment Dhoni sir hit that winning six and hugged Yuvraj Singh, I decided I would also aim to play for India someday. I used to play cricket, but I began taking the game more seriously after that historic moment. The 2011 World Cup team inspired me a lot. I spoke about that triumph with Dhoni sir. He has an abundance of knowledge," Choudhary told TOI. 

Last season, the left-arm seamer was part of CSK as a net bowler and was picked at a base price of INR 20 lakhs at the mega-auction earlier this year.

With Deepak Chahar getting ruled out due to injury, the onus of leading the attack fell on his young shoulders.

Choudhary did not have a great start as he leaked many runs in his first four outings while managing just four wickets.

However, a pep talk with MSD ahead of the fixture against the Mumbai Indians worked wonders for the young lad as he claimed three wickets in what turned out to be a match-winning performance.

"Dhoni sir's guidance has helped me a lot. I have been bowling in the powerplay and got wickets and controlled the flow of runs. I swing the ball and don't let a batsman score. I create pressure. A batsman will try to score under pressure, he will play some rushed shots and lose his wicket," the left-armer said. 

"Dhoni sir has asked me to prepare for the death overs now. He said you have been bowling in the powerplay and now be ready to bowl in the death overs. He said - 'pressure nahi lena, bass run mat dena, wicket ayega' (Don't take pressure, just don't leak runs, wickets will come). I am learning each day under Dhoni sir," Choudhary revealed.

The southpaw backed it up with a match-winning four-wicket haul against the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the last game and will hope to continue with the good work in the upcoming fixtures.