Over a decade after the match in question, Pakistani cricketer Saeed Ajmal has come out with a rant that he deserved to be Man of the Match in the third ODI between India and Pakistan that took place in January 2013. Ajmal claimed he should have won the prize after helping bowl India out for a low score. Mahendra Singh Dhoni was named Man of the Match in that game. The match he was talking about was played on 6th January, 2013, and India ended up winning by 10 runs.
Indirectly hitting out at MS Dhoni, Ajmal said, “I think it was my bad luck. I bowled India out for 175 (the actual Indian score was 167) in the third ODI – the only series I played in India. We won the first two matches, and I bowled outstandingly well in both. In the third ODI, I got five wickets which is still my best ODI figures. What is 175? But MS Dhoni, for scoring some 18 runs (Dhoni scored 36) and dropping two catches, took away the Man of the Match award. It’s unfair. What is the meaning of a Man of the Match? A person who has the best performance in a game should win it, right? But since India won the match, they gave Man of the Match award to Dhoni for dropping a catch.” Ajmal was speaking at Nadir Ali’s podcast released on 1st July.
Ajmal and Nadir discussed that he never won any Man of The Match award despite being the “world’s no.1 ranked ODI and T20I bowler”. Interestingly, the so-called facts against Dhoni Ajmal tabled during the podcast were not true. During the match, Dhoni did not score 18, but made 36 runs. In a low-scoring game with bowlers dominating, that 36 proved to be the difference in the end.
Further, Dhoni did not miss two, but one very difficult catch. Interestingly, Dhoni took the catch that dismissed Ajmal after scoring just one on the scoreboard. He also stumped Umar Akmal as he marshaled his troops to restrict Pakistan below the target of 168.
Remembering another match, Saeed Ajmal said, “Even against South Africa, I once dismissed four batsmen. I may not have won a Man of the Match award, but I certainly won the Player of the Series award in ODIs. I dismissed Hashim Amla in the last over when SA needed ten runs to win in 12 balls. I got him out second last. It was the first-ever Pakistan team that won an ODI series in South Africa. In every match, I gave match-winning performances during that tour and still didn’t win a single Man of The Match award”.