Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan said that Devon Conway's batting style is very similar to that of Michael Hussey after the New Zealand cricketer played a crucial role in Chennai Super Kings's eight-run win over Royal Challengers Bangalore in a high-scoring IPL 2023 match in Bengaluru.
In the Southern Derby between RCB and CSK, Conway stole the show with his explosive, yet classical batting at M Chinnaswamy. The left-handed batter from New Zealand played a sublime knock of 83 off 45 balls to help CSK post a mammoth total.
The CSK bowlers then held their nerve and survived Glenn Maxwell (76 off 36) and Faf Du Plessis (62 off 33) blitzes to win the game by 8 runs in yet another thriller on Monday night.After the game, former India all-rounder Irfan likened Conway to former Australia batter Michael Hussey, who was a vital cog in the CSK setup for many years and helped the Yellow Brigade win IPL in 2010 and 2011. Hussey is now CSK's batting coach.
"Devon Conway's batting style is very similar to that of Michael Hussey. Once he starts scoring runs, he does not stop. His speciality was that as Faf du Plessis changed fielding positions, Conway took advantage of that and played shots in the gap," said Irfan Star Sports' Cricket Live.
The high-adrenaline encounter between RCB and CSK also showcased MS Dhoni's calming effect on the side which helped the latter stave off the jittery moments on the pitch in slog overs.Former India cricketer Sunil Gavaskar believes the reason why CSK managed to weather the storm of Faf du Plessis and Glenn Maxwell is because of Dhoni behind the stumps.
"Players don't feel much pressure when MS Dhoni is leading the side. He's utterly cool and that helps. He stays in the moment and never gets carried away. Yes, he gives them some stares once they drop catches or miss field but he never puts them under pressure. That is the reason why CSK manage to brave crunch situations more often than not," said Gavaskar.