After being named Player of the Match, Dube reflected on his previous struggles against the short ball during the IPL. He admitted that there was a time when he couldn’t make a clean connection with bouncers, despite having the power. However, he talked about Dhoni’s advice that changed his mindset.
“There was a time when I joined IPL, I had some trouble with short balls, at that time I couldn’t hit them very cleanly, but then I realized that if I have to dominate at this level and have that power, then why should I be left behind because of one thing, so I worked a lot on that thing in the off-season. Mahi bhai had told me that it is not necessary that you have to hit a six on that ball, you can hit a boundary or take a single, so that thing was always in. That’s what I think when I the starting entrance,” Dube said.
In the match, India had chosen to bat first at the Narendra Modi Stadium. Abhishek Sharma registered his third duck of the tournament as the Dutch bowlers, led by Aryan Dutt, kept things tight in the powerplay.
Dube’s innings started slowly, scoring just six runs off his first eleven deliveries and even surviving a close lbw call. However, he then turned to the spinners and took advantage of predictable changes of pace as he dismantled the Dutch attack. His half-century came off just 25 balls, with four boundaries and six sixes.
Alongside Hardik Pandya, who contributed a whopping 30 off 21 balls, Dube made a crucial stand of 119 runs in the last 10 overs. India scored 75 runs in the last five overs alone. Dube finally fell in the 19th over, but the damage had already been done. Dube also contributed with the ball, taking 2/35, further damaging the Netherlands’ chase. Although the Dutch batters fought hard and finished at 176/7, India secured a 17-run win, extending their winning streak in the tournament.
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