Fastest hands. Fastest mind. At 37, MS Dhoni has still got it. The wicketkeeper once again showed he has superpowers as he ran out James Neesham of New Zealand in the fifth and final ODI of the series at Westpac Stadium, Hamilton.
The incident happened in the 37th over of the New Zealand innings and Neesham was looking extremely dangerous. He hit three consecutive overs for more than 10 runs as he struck Hardik Pandya for 11, Mohammed Shami for 10 runs and Bhuvneshwar Kumar for 13.
Following the onslaught, skipper Rohit Sharma turned to India's man with the golden arm – Kedar Jadhav. Off the second ball of the over, Neesham missed a sweep shot and it hit his back leg. He was worried about the LBW appeal and as everyone was busy pleading with the umpire, Dhoni swivelled back, picked up the ball and in a flash dislodged the bails with a throw from close range.
Behind the stump another best from #Dhoni #5thODI #NZvIND pic.twitter.com/0CAYAgiESF
— ARV29dec (@ARV291) February 3, 2019
Neesham's wicket was a huge moment in the match as had brought the required run rate under 6 per-over with 14 overs left to play. It seemed as though he would take the game beyond India's grasp when Dhoni pulled a rabbit out of the hat.
Social media naturally went berserk at Dhoni's brilliance.
LBW appeal? - Rejected ?
— Rajasthan Royals (@rajasthanroyals) February 3, 2019
Run out opportunity? - Taken ?
MS Dhoni's ⚡⚡ reaction!#NZvIND #HallaBol pic.twitter.com/ZXCLL6J5mh
Yeh Airtel wale speed kya hoti h Dhoni se seekhna chahiye ?
— Aparna ?? (@Jayaa_IND) February 3, 2019
That RunOut ? #NZvIND #INDvNZ
Amazing Photoshop skills. #NZvInd pic.twitter.com/bci26z8Q6e
— SAGAR (@sagarcasm) February 3, 2019
Brilliant awareness from @msdhoni, yet again. What a run out. Safe to say that he has mastered.. #NZvIND #4thODI pic.twitter.com/LzqiEFScgX
— Sharath Bala (@ShadyBala) February 3, 2019
That Jimmy Nisham run-out, could this guy be any smarter #NZvIND #MSDhoni pic.twitter.com/YyIZcuKf2F
— GunJan tripathi (@gungun005) February 3, 2019
With this run out, Thala reserved his place in the team for the next ten years!#NZvIND pic.twitter.com/yV59YZxgRY
— Brainfaden Smith (@brainfadesmith) February 3, 2019
Can someone hit the Indian George Costanza for Six! #NZvIND pic.twitter.com/yI2DsAwGRi
— The ACC (@TheACCnz) February 3, 2019
Earlier in the day, Ambati Rayudu helped India rebuild the innings along with Vijay Shankar after the visitors were reduced to 18-4. Rayudu's 90 set the platform for a Hardik Pandya special as his 45 off 22 balls took India's total beyond 250.
Coming out to defend the total, Shami was once again impressive as he picked up two wickets and Yuzvendra Chahal continued his good form with three scalps. The game is now tantalisingly poised as the hosts are inching close to the target but have only two wickets in hand.