IND vs AFG: Shivam Dube Credits MS Dhoni & CSK For His Significant Improvement

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Indian all-rounder Shivam Dube credited Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his IPL franchise Chennai Super Kings (CSK) for his significant improvement and finishing ability following successive match-winning fifties for the national side.

Dube, who returned to the national team after spending the Australia series on the bench and missing out on the South Africa tour, has scored two unbeaten fifties to see India home in the two T20Is against Afghanistan in the ongoing three-match series at home.

In the series opener, Dube scored 60 not out off 40 balls to guide India to a 6-wicket victory at the PCA Stadium in Mohali. The hard-hitting all-rounder followed that with an unbeaten 63 off 32 balls to see the side home in another 6-wicket victory.

The 30-year-old caught the selectors' attention with a brilliant IPL 2023 with CSK for whom he scored a total of 418 runs, including 3 fifties in 16 innings. But the highlight was his six-hitting ability in the season.

Even in the two T20Is against Afghanistan, Dube smashed 6 sixes across two innings, and in the post match reaction with JioCinema, he revealed the secret behind his ability to hit those big shots and what inspired his recent transformation.

On the range of his shot-making, Dube said: "It's a pleasure to keep improving my performance as I am going along. The range I have is God's gift and I have also worked a lot on it. I have developed many areas of my game and I am getting the runs on the board."

On the methods he has employed that's resulted in a significant improvement, Dube added: "This credit goes to Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Mahi bhai (MS Dhoni) because I always had this game in me.

"They have brought out the best in me. They have always encouraged me and said that they believe in me. Stephen Fleming and Mike Hussey have shown faith in me."

On his mindset as a finisher, Dube said: "As a middle-order batsman, my role is to take on spinners and improve the strike rate. But when it is like getting 20-25 runs, I focus on that.

"What I have seen Mahi bhai do for a long time, I am working in that direction. I have to keep myself calm and composed and just focus on one ball at a time."

On the amount of work that has gone into improving his game against short balls. the all-rounder said: "I have worked a lot on it. When I was playing domestic cricket, I was able to dominate all the bowlers.

"But when it came to IPL and Indian cricket it was not easy as bowlers were bowling over 140km/hr. I worked a lot with side arms, but it is more about the mindset which I worked."

Team India will hope Hardik Pandya will be available for the T20 World Cup 2024, but they will not be too concerned with the emergence of form for Dube, who could fill in the pace-bowling all-rounder's role.

However, the Mumbai all-rounder is only thinking about the present and not worried about what is to come in the next few months as he prepares to face Afghanistan in the third and final T20I on Wednesday (January 17) in Bengaluru.

"In the past I have thought a lot about the future. But I have realised that I got to focus on the present. I have to focus on how to improve my skills, so that's more important to me. I just try to keep myself grounded and try to focus on what I have to do," Dube concluded.