Thala for a reason! MS Dhoni’s advice became game changer for Hardik Pandya, KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant in T20s

MS Dhoni might have retired from international cricket but his effect on Team India is still felt. One department where the former Indian skipper is influencing the Indian players is the shape of the bat.

Recently Indian players have started to reshape their bats with a pronounced curve at the bottom. Players like Hardik Pandya, KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant use these kinds of bats for better shot-making. This type of bat design was a brainchild of MS Dhoni after he made the adjustment to aid power-hitting. It is reported that Dhoni suggested Pant and Pandya use round-bottom bats in order to improve their T20 game.

“It was Dhoni who had first started using this kind of bat before the 2019 World Cup. And now these Indian players have started asking for this kind of bat, “Paras Anand, managing director of Sanspareils Greenlands (SG) told Times of India.

“These batters are ordered specially for shorter formats. The players claim that it helps them access all directions of the ground while shot-making. A bat with a flat bottom prompts a relatively closed stance whereas the round-bottomed bat enables them to have a more open stance that helps them to manoeuvre the bat easily from the word go,” said Anand.

“If one shaves the bottom and makes it round, the bat has a thicker base and has more meat at the bottom, “Anand explained.

A meatier bottom allows batters to swing the bat more easily and it is more akin to a baseball bat in weight distribution. It is reported that both Pant and Hardik approached Dhoni for advice after their poor showing in the shortest format. It was then that Dhoni advised them to play with a bottom-heavy and rounded bat.

“Dhoni told him to try the round-bottomed bat. He is slowly getting used to it. The curve on his bat is not as pronounced yet. But he can feel some difference, “ a source said when asked about Pant’s experience with the bottom-rounded bats.