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‘I was trying to impress MS Dhoni…’: RR pacer's candid revelation on pressure situation in IPL 2025 against CSK great
The 30-year-old revealed that he was trying to impress CSK great Mahendra Singh Dhoni when they're up against each other.
Tushar Deshpande shared his experience of bowling to former Chennai Super Kings captain MS Dhoni during IPL 2025. Having represented the franchise from 2022 to 2024, Deshpande recalled how Dhoni trusted his ability and how he emerged as a key wicket-taker in his final two years with the side. The right pacer was signed by Rajasthan Royals in the IPL 2025 mega auction for INR 6.50 crore.
During his team's final match of the season, Deshpande got to bowl against his former skipper, Dhoni. He did well by giving away just 6 runs of the penultimate over, with Shivam Dube also present in the middle for CSK. He didn't concede a single boundary, and six singles came off it.
The 30-year-old revealed that he was trying to impress Dhoni when they're up against each other.
"[Got] a lot of confidence from that over," Deshpande said. "It's always pressure bowling to Mahi bhai because he's the best finisher in the world. I was kind of trying to impress him and just wanted to bowl my best ball to him. Before last season, I had never bowled to him in an official game," Deshpande said on ESPNCricinfo.
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Meanwhile, the right-arm paceman had an underwhelming IPL season with 9 wickets in 10 matches. Deshpande reflected on the challenges of being a bowler in the IPL, stressing that the tournament’s high-pressure nature and the introduction of the Impact Player rule make it unfair to judge a bowler by just one performance.
"The IPL is a high-pressure environment and the way after the Impact Player where the game is going, you cannot judge a bowler by a single game or the runs he gives or the wickets he picks. I always bowled in the powerplay and the death. Those are the tough situations of the game," Deshpande added.
“For CSK, I was the highest wicket-taker”: Deshpande
Talking further about his season at Rajasthan Royals and how he tried to be level-headed after enjoying success at CSK.
"And some or the other game will go my way or the batsman's way. So it was very important for me to be level-headed because earlier for CSK [Chennai Super Kings] I was the highest wicket-taker [17 in IPL 2024]. A year before that also I was the highest wicket-taker for CSK [21 in IPL 2023]. Bowlers can't be a lot harder on themselves because even good balls are going for runs," he added.
