“Difficult To Catch Him”: MS Dhoni Once Highlighted Why Sunil Narine had All Qualities Of A Successful T20 Spinner

Kolkata Knight Riders spinner Sunil Narine is one of the best-ever spinners to play in the Indian Premier League. When Narine was bought by KKR in 2012, he was an unknown entity but he created havoc in his very first season. Chennai Super Kings captain MS Dhoni had praised Narine in his very first season itself.

Narine was a mystery spinner and had a lot of variations in his arsenal. Dhoni tipped Narine to become a successful T20 bowler and the wicket-keeper has been proven right by the West Indian. Dhoni said that Narine’s action makes him very difficult to predict and that’s why he has been so proficient in picking wickets.

In his very first season, Narine had scalped 24 wickets and surprised everyone in the competition. He had a base price of $50,000 in the auction and he was finally sold for a massive price of $700,000. Since then, he has been with KKR and is currently at an INR 6 crore contract.

MS Dhoni Once Highlighted Why Sunil Narine had All Qualities Of A Successful T20 Spinner

In 2012, after a match against Kolkata, Dhoni had showered a lot of praise on Narine. He said that the bowlers like Narine are made to take wickets in T20 format as and when batters try to target them. Apart from his action, Narine’s ability to consistently bowl tougher lengths impressed the former Indian captain.

“With his action, it is difficult to catch him as to which side he is bowling whether it is the one that comes into a right-hander or it goes out,” Dhoni had said in 2012.

“The variation he has got and the consistency that he has got in maintaining line and length has been crucial.”

Narine’s action has changed a lot in all these years and he is no more a prolific wicket-taker like he used to be. He has not picked more than 20 wickets in a season since 2014. However, he is still one of the most economical bowlers and his IPL career economy of 6.75 proves the same.

MS Dhoni vs Sunil Narine IPL Head to Head record

Narine has been very successful against Dhoni in IPL. In 74 balls against Narine, Dhoni has managed to score just 39 runs at a strike rate of 52.70. Narine has managed to dismiss Dhoni just once, but he has restriced Dhoni at will. The right-handed has smashed just one four in those 74 deliveries.

Overall, Narine has scalped 159 wickets at a strike-rate of 26.16 in IPL history. He has scored four half-centuries with the bat as well and has a strike-rate of 160.03.