Inspired by Dhoni, learnt helicopter shot for 'death' overs: Vishnu Solanki

Right-handed batsman Vishnu Solanki, who hit a helicopter shot a la MS Dhoni off the last ball in the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 quarter-final against Haryana, to take Baroda to win and into the semi-finals

"I first practiced the shot with a tennis ball at the nets. Then I tried it with a cricket ball. You need perfect timing for this shot as well as focus. You should know what bowlers are bowling," he said.

Solanki had tried this shot in the league-stage games of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy too. He made an unbeaten 33-ball 59 against Gujarat, a 17-ball 28 against Maharashtra, and an unbeaten 33-ball 42 against Chhattisgarh. These knocks followed a duck against Himachal Pradesh and six against Uttarakhand.

"This is my natural game," he said on being asked about his aggressive batting. "I tried these shots in the league games too. Whenever I batted in the 'death' overs of the tournament, I have tried these shots."