Australian cricketer Ben Dunk might have drawn inspiration from Adam Gilchrist in his early years but the wicket-keeper batsman wants to emulate former India skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Dunk, who played five T20Is for Australia, on Tuesday said Dhoni is the number one wicketkeeper-batsman cricket has ever seen. The 33-year-old cricketer was in awe of the former Indian skipper’s ability to be calm and composed under intense situations during a game. Dunk revealed that while playing for Melbourne Stars he often asks team manager Russell Radhakrishnan, who is also the team manager of the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Chennai Super Kings (CSK), as to how would Dhoni react in a particular situation.

“I think MS is really the number one wicket-keeper batsman we have ever seen. The way he has played over for a long period of time. He is amazing. I often ask Russell Radhakrishnan what would MS (Dhoni) do in situations of a game. His legacy, his record speaks for himself, he takes the game from a situation when win seems impossible and he is able to somehow win the game all the time. If I can play 5 to 10 percent as good as MS I will be very happy,” said Dunk while replying to a query from ANI.

Dunk also revealed that during his schooling days he stayed up late just to watch former England cricketer Kevin Pietersen bat in Ashes 2005.

“Growing up I looked up to Adam Gilchrist as a left-handed batsman and then I fell in love with Kevin Pietersen’s game during the 2005 Ashes series, I was in boarding school and stayed up late to watch the series. He played really well and I loved watching him,” said Dunk.

Dunk began his state career as Queensland’s wicketkeeping understudy but made his name as a specialist batsman after moving to Tasmania.

The left-handed batsman will now be seen in action for Qalandars in the upcoming Abu Dhabi T10 league. The showpiece event will be played from January 28 to February 6 at the Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium.

Promoted

Last month, Dhoni was named as the captain of ICC Men’s ODI and T20I Team of the Decade. The CSK skipper also bagged the ICC Spirit of Cricket Award of the Decade for his gesture of calling back England batsman Ian Bell after a bizarre run out in the Nottingham Test in 2011.

Dhoni retired from international cricket in August last year. He had made his ODI debut against Bangladesh in 2004. Dhoni played 350 ODIs with his highest score being 183 against Sri Lanka. He remains the only captain to win all major ICC trophies (50-over World Cup, T20 World Cup, and Champions Trophy).