'Dhoni Dropped 2 Catches, Still..'- Saeed Ajmal Calls Out ‘Injustice’
Saeed Ajmal picked fifer in that IND vs PAK match | Source: Twitter
The former Pakistan spinner Saeed Ajmal expressed his discontent with the match officials' decision to give the Man of the Match award to MS Dhoni in an ODI between the two sides when Pakistan visited India in 2012-13.
It was the last time the two nations played bilateral cricket against each other. Since then, both countries have never faced each other in bilaterals due to political tension between them, and they only meet in ICC tournaments and Asia Cup.
Back then, MS Dhoni led the Indian team as the captain, and the Men in Blue had suffered defeats in the first two ODIs of the three-match series. The third and final ODI, held in Delhi, was crucial for them to avoid a whitewash.
After winning the toss, India opted to bat first, and managed to post a total of 167 runs in 43.4 overs. MS Dhoni led them from the front, while Suresh Raina and Ravindra Jadeja provided valuable contributions of 31 and 27 runs, respectively.
For Pakistan, Saeed Ajmal returned with the magnificent figures of 5/24. In reply, Ishant Sharma picked three wickets while Bhuvneshwar Kumar and R Ashwin took two each as Pakistan bundled out for 157 runs.
Later, MS Dhoni was adjudged the Player of the Match despite Ajmal’s five-wicket haul. The former Pakistan spinner has finally spoken out, stating that Dhoni did not deserve to win the Player of the Match award in that match, and he should’ve won the award for his fifer.
Here’s what Saeed Ajmal said on The Nadir Ali podcast:
"I think it was my bad luck. I bowled India out for 175 in the third ODI – it was the only series I played in India. We won the first two matches and I bowled outstandingly well in both. In the third ODI, I got five wickets which is still my best ODI figures. What is 175? But MS Dhoni, for scoring some 18 runs and dropping two catches, took away the Man of the Match award. It's unfair."
He further went on to explain that the Man of the Match award goes to the player who performs the best in the game. Hence, according to him, he should have won that award irrespective of the match's result.
"What is the meaning of a Man of the Match? A person who has the best performance in a game should win it, right? But since India won the match, they gave the Man of the Match award to Dhoni for dropping a catch."
While Ajmal's claim about taking five wickets and restricting India to 175 is well-founded, he appears to have forgotten the accurate details of MS Dhoni's batting display. Dhoni scored an impressive 36 runs, and not 18 runs as he claimed on the podcast.
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