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Chennai Super Kings' captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni plays a shot during the Indian Premier League match against Lucknow Super Giants at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. Image Credit: AFP

New Delhi: Former India opener Virender Sehwag believes Chennai Super Kings skipper MS Dhoni doesn’t go after milestones and said achieving the 5000-run milestone in the Indian Premier League (IPL) won’t make any difference to former India captain.

During the match against Lucknow Super Giants, the CSK skipper crossed the 5000-run mark during his three-ball 12-run knock and became the first specialist wicketkeeper to reach the milestone in IPL.

“If you ask MS Dhoni, he will ask what difference it makes, whether he has scored 5000, 3000 or 7000 runs, the important thing is to win the trophy, which he has done. I don’t think he goes after or thinks about milestones,” Sehwag said during the post-match show on Star Sports.

Sehwag added that records and milestones are remembered post-retirement. “I was also like that. Who knows how many runs have been scored but it is true that these numbers are remembered later. When you retire, it is remembered that this player scored so many runs in the IPL,” he said.

Cash-rich league

Moreover, Dhoni became the fifth Indian and overall the seventh player after Virat Kohli (6706), Shikhar Dhawan (6284), David Warner (5937), Rohit Sharma (5880), Suresh Raina (5528) and AB de Villiers (5162), to cross the 5000-run mark in the cash-rich league.

Out of the seven batters, who have scored more than 5000 runs in the IPL, Dhoni is the only player who has achieved the landmark while batting in the lower-middle order.

“The expectation is that the top-order batters will score the most runs. MS Dhoni comes in the middle order or lower-middle order and he has scored 5000 runs. No player might be able to score so many runs while playing at that number. He is consistent, scores runs and wins matches for his team. He is a very big player,” Sehwag said.