Dubai: When Indian chief selector M.S.K. Prasad recently said that former Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s performance is under scrutiny, one failed to measure the magnitude of the impact the statement would create soon after.
What Prasad has done is something akin to a rival provoking an incoming great batsman and it had its effect soon enough, albeit on a positive note, for Indian cricket and to Dhoni personally.
Dhoni, just like a batsman who was stuck on the head by a first-ball bouncer, woke up from his slumber to show Prasad how he still stands head and shoulders over the rest by producing match-winning performances in the last seven games since the comment was made prior to the Sri Lanka tour.
In these seven games, Dhoni’s record speak volumes about the intensity with which he is operating as a batsman (Did not bat, 45 not out, 67 not out, 49 not out, one not out, one not out and 79). At least two of those innings came under pressure when India had almost lost half of their top batsmen for a paltry total. This, of course, is along with the fitness levels and agility that the ‘MSD’ continues to show behind the stumps, becoming the first wicketkeeper in history to register 100 stumpings in ODI.
With the focus shifting to the World Cup 2019, Gulf News takes a look at why Dhoni should be an integral part of the team, despite being almost 38, when the event takes place in England.
Here are the five key reasons behind Dhoni’s invaluable presence:
Cool head
Popularly known as ‘Captain Cool,’ Dhoni has proved time and again that he is unruffled by the pressure of the match situation and waits to pounce on the rivals at the crucial time to tilt the match in India’s favour. He has done it twice in the last seven games when mystery spinner Akila Dananjaya cleaned up the top order in the second ODI in Sri Lanka. Dhoni, in the company of Bhuvneshwar Kumar, took Men in Blue to an improbable victory. Dhoni repeated the performance in Chennai on Sunday where along with Hardik Pandya gave India a winning target, despite being down 95-5 against a sustained and varied Australian attack. During the process MSD also became the fourth Indian to score 100th international 50 (33 in Tests, 66 ODI, 1 Twenty20).
Vital experience
Normally, a captain relies a lot on the inputs from a wicketkeeper during a match. In Dhoni the current skipper Kohli has such vast experience — both as a captain and a wicketkeeper — he can fallback on his predecessor’s invaluable experience in times of crisis. Dhoni can also give his inputs on the strengths of a specific batsman and help the bowlers alter their line and length accordingly and change the field placings to outthink the rival batsmen.
Smart thinker
Dhoni’s shrewd brain has won a number of matches as a keeper as much as a batsman. How can one forget the run out off the last ball against Bangladesh in the Twenty20 World Cup in Bengaluru to give India one-run win. While his smart run outs and stumpings have caught many batsmen on the wrong foot, these crucial dismissals have been tilting the matches in India’s favour on many an occasion.
Matured approach
Dhoni is most-feared as the deadly finisher over the years, but of late the dashing batsman from Jharkhand has been adopting a matured approach. We seldom see his trademark Helicopter shots flying over to the roofs of the stadiums. Dhoni, who is still supremely fit despite being 36, relies on converting ones and twos and playing a sheet-anchor role and is happy to allow his younger or even lesser talented batsmen to take control. It was evident from the partnerships with Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Pandya.
No clear alternative
Though Indian selectors have found Wriddhiman Saha as a replacement to Dhoni after his sudden retirement from Tests midway in Australia, the former skipper is still the best in the shorter formats. Though many wicket keepers are available like Dinesh Karthik, Parthiv Patel, Naman Ojha, Sanju Samson or even the up and coming dashing left-hander Rishabh Pant of Delhi, none have them have been consistent to replace Dhoni, who plays in the crucial late order to add depth to batting along with all-rounders like Pandya, Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja. Dhoni’s legendary ability to explode always keeps the rival teams on their toes.
