MS Dhoni said ‘sab maarte hai off-spinner ko T20 mein. Think a bit before you bowl

Despite tags like ‘daddy army’ for a few seasons, Chennai Super Kings have always been a breeding ground for talented young cricketers who want to make it big.

The franchise’s process of nurturing young talent from scratch and then backing them to the hilt has been one of their most striking features. At the centre of it all for years has been MS Dhoni. The latest addition in CSK’s talent pool is young Mumbai off-spinner Salman Khan.

Son of a groundsman, Salman, is currently with the CSK squad as a net bowler in IPL 2022. The journey from a small tent in Mumbai’s Cross Maidan to the net session of four-time IPL champions of CSK, has been a special one for Salman.

“One day, I got a call from a Chennai Super Kings official asking me whether I can join as a net bowler for this season. Later, I got to know my name was recommended by (Mumbai player) Tushar Deshpande. I was excited because I will get a chance to learn, otherwise I would be just playing club cricket,” Salman told The Indian Express.

Going by CSK’s trend of picking their net bowlers in the main squad – Mukesh Choudhary and Prashant were net bowlers last year before being picked up in the mega auction this year – Salman does stand a chance to make it big if he can impress Dhoni and captain Ravindra Jadeja.

In the brief interaction that he has had with MS Dhoni, the legendary cricketer told him to put some thought behind his bowling as batters often try to go after off-spinners in the shortest format of the game.

“I spoke to Mahi bhai and Jadeja. I want to learn from them, these two months might change my life. I asked Mahi bhai about my bowling. He said, ‘Salman, off-spinner ko T20 mein sab maarne hi dekhte hai, so thoda dimag se dalne ka, jyada sochne ka (in T20s, everyone tries to hit the off-spinner, so put some thought behind your bowling). He said he will speak to me after a few games. The franchise is treating us like everyone else. We are getting the same treatment like everyone else. The environment is superb,” he said.