Dashing England batsman Kevin Pietersen feels Mahendra Singh Dhoni's "clever" captaincy is the reason behind Chennai Super Kings' success in the ongoing IPL but downplayed the issue of his own absence being the cause of Delhi Daredevils' poor show.
"The reason why CSK are such a successful is because MS (Dhoni) is such a clever skipper in Indian conditions," Pietersen replied when asked about his opinion on the secret of CSK's success in the cash-rich league.
"Besides making a huge impact with the bat, CSK have got quality spinners for the tracks on which they are playing. Not to forget their overseas recruits including Mike Hussey and even coach Stephen Fleming has made a significant contribution," Pietersen told reporters during a whirlwind visit to the capital, where he was unveiled as the Brand Ambassador of Japanese watch giants Citizen.
"While I am surprised to find KKR doing so badly and I will be a fool to bet against CSK considering that one Qualifier and the final will be played at the Eden Gardens, which is so similar to Chennai. Hyderabad has also been good. Difficult call but I will go with Chennai."
Asked about his knee injury that dented Daredevils' chances, he answered, "It's flattering to hear that but I don't think that's the only reason. We also didn't have Viru (Sehwag) for the initial matches, Morne (Morkel) and Roelof (Van der Merwe) had domestic commitments. Also what happened to Jesse made us slow starters. But the boys are gaining confidence and mathematically, we can still make it."
"Daredevils is very close to my heart as I have so many friends over here. The coaching set-up is great and a fantastic owner. It's not that absence of one person would make a difference.
