IPL 2019: Dhoni blames batsmen for poor show against Mumbai in Qualifier 1

Chennai : Chennai Super Kings (CSK) skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni expressed his disappointment over how the batsmen performed in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2019 Qualifier 1 against the Mumbai Indians (MI).

"At home, we had to assess the conditions quickly. We have played 6 to 7 games already, that’s the home advantage. We needed to know how the pitch behaves, would it be tacky? Is the ball coming on or not, those were the things we didn’t do well, I think the batting needs to get better," CSK skipper didn’t mince words at the post-match presentation ceremony.

He particularly pointed out bad choice of shot selected by his team's batsmen causing early losses in the game.

“These are the best batsmen we have got, it looks like we are are batting well, but at times, but in different games, they pull off shots that shouldn’t be played. These are the players who we have banked on. They have the experience and they should know to assess the conditions better, hopefully, we will do well in the next game,” said.

CSK managed to score mere 131 runs on the scoreboard, Mumbai Indians achieved the score in just 18.3 overs.

He had a word of caution now that CSK has lost four out of their last six games but are still in the hunt having finished in the top two.

“It isn’t good to lose games at such times, but it is good that we finished in the top-two, rather then going over the wicket, we now need to go round the wicket, that means the journey takes a longer time. But luckily, we finished in the top two and that gives us a second chance.