"Learning from the best'- UAE's T20 WC hat-trick leg-spinner Karthik Meiyappan credits MS Dhoni for his success

The 2022 T20 World Cup saw associate or weaker teams upset big teams, and some unknown players came up and performed brilliantly on the biggest stage. One such name that caught the attention of the world was the UAE young leg-spinner Karthik Meiyappan.

Notably, Meiyappan became the first bowler to take a hat-trick in the recently concluded edition of the T20 World Cup in Australia. He achieved this massive feat in a match against Sri Lanka in the first round of the competition.

He dismissed Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Charith Asalanka, and Dasun Shanaka to complete this rare record in that game. Meiyappan bowled some really good wrong-uns that the batters couldn't pick. Interestingly, the young leg-spinner was also part of the Indian Premier League in the 2021 season.

On top of that, he was part of one of the most successful IPL franchises and four-time champions, the Chennai Super Kings, when the franchise picked him as a net bowler during the second leg in the UAE.

And now the UAE leg-spinner himself has revealed how some advice from the former Indian skipper and CSK captain, MS Dhoni, helped him. In an interview with ESPN Cricinfo, Meiyappan said that ahead of the series against Ireland in October 2021, he was part of the CSK setup.

He said, "Before the Ireland series [in October 2021], I had a stint with CSK. I spoke to MS Dhoni about how I could handle them sweeping the ball because Ireland are more of sweepers. So, he gave me advice and, like I said, you're learning off the best."

Furthermore, he said that that was the career-changing moment for him as a bowler, and things started to go in the right direction after that. He also said that he always admires the late Australian legend Shane Warne, and recently he has also started following Sri Lankan leg-spinner Wanindu Hasaranga.

Notably, the UAE leg-spinner has also registered himself for the upcoming mini-auction for the next edition of the Indian Premier League. He is hoping that he can get a deal in the auction.