Mahender Singh Dhoni
Dhoni has been the darling of the cricket crazy population of the country during the past decade.Even during his hey day,
even at the height of his popularity, he was never my favourite.
He is a wicket-keeper-batsman-captain of the national cricket team. Let me take up each of these roles, one by one.
As a batsman, he walloped the ball hard.He had uncoventional,ugly shots because he never trained to bat. The batsman who spends hours everyday
playing and practising for hours, has technique, fluidity and grace about their shots. This was not the case. with Dhoni. He got away with hard hitting
and acquired a reputation as a finisher. More of this later.
As a wicket keeper,he was not a clean collector of the ball.Naturally, because he had never trained to be a wicket keeper either.He had developed a reputation as
a batsman so fast, that he never played any domestic matches or perfected his wicket keeping skills.There was a period when he retained his place as a
captain and thereby deprived the nation of a better wicket keeper in the side.
Captain Cool-- that is what they call him and he acquired that name by not reacting to situations but by remaining passive. He had trained in one thing and that
is in masking his emotions and so he acquired that sobriquet. He did win matches by 'finishing'.ie, by building on the good work done by the earlier batsmen.He
made it out as if he was a great strategist. He was not. He was plain lucky in some of his decision making. Because it worked, he could be called Captain Cool.
As a leader of men he was not a communicator. He rated his team mates in the press conferences; it appeared he never addressed them in the dressing room.
( Of course the huddle has now become mandatory and he follows the custom.) Or, even on the field. He would never have a word of advice or cheer for the struggling
bowler for many years. It was only in the past few years that he would say something occasionally to his team mate. Maybe to Jadeja or Raina. But never to Ashwin.
The greatest grouse I have against him is for the way he treated his seniors- Fab Four/ Fab Five. Sachin,Rahul,Sehwag, Laxman,Ganguly.
Mind you, he won matches because of their performance. When their performance declined,as it will , at one time,he treated them shabbily. It is
difficult to forget his non response to Laxman's phone calls,his sprat with Sehwag, and his poor handling of Dravid and Sachin. If he thought
that they needed to quit earlier than they did, he is also in the same boat now. Not worth his place in the team and carrying on, on the strength of his
past reputation. He may call himself a finisher,but he is not that now for the past so many games. He is FINISHED!!
Coming to the days when the team was in transition after the seniors had retired, he was the captain who found fault with his bowlers and batsman.
He didnt even know the players on the domestic scene. He thought this was to be tracked only by the selectors. Captain of the national team and you dont
even follow the domestic scene. Shame on you!
His treatment of the youngsters reeked of favouritism. His persistence with Jadeja throughout his non performance ,his neglect of Ajinkya Rahane throughout his good performance, his insistence on including Raina even during a long bad patch, all told their own tale. Captain Cool lived a charmed life.
The selectors were in awe of his clout and selected the team members he wanted. India never got the best side. It was only Dhoni's side. There were players
who did not play well under him and who are now doing well. How is that mr. Know all Dhoni? Not a great motivator, are you?
Now we come to BCCI ex chairman and the IPL. The common perception was that the tournament was planned, scheduled and played with the sole purpose of
ensuring that Chennai Super Kings won. There was a time when the CSK team resembled the national side because they had Dhoni as captain and Mr. Srinivasan as chief.
The two appeared to be hand in glove.
M.S.Dhonis days are over. The sooner he gets the sack, the better.Even if he wins the current New Zealand series. Because anyone can lead the current team to victory.
The young brigade is all charged up. The introduction of Virat Kohli as Test captain has brought freshness,aggression, passion and bonding into the side. Believe me,
it is reflecting in the ODI side. Virat Kohli finishes the game and M.S.Dhoni gets the credit. For how long?
There was a time not so long ago, when he didn't know how to win Test matches. He would play defensively , keep his record unbeaten, but it also meant that he
could not marshal his resources. He wanted the seniors out, but the ones who stepped in had to have great experience from day one.He was never good at mentoring.
Look at the irony! He claims to be mentoring NOW. He claims to be playing with the Jharkhand Ranji team NOW. What play acting and posturing!!. He is addressing
the children and smiling at them NOW. He is talking and smiling with Virat Kohli NOW. Why did he not do this earlier? Most Stupid Dhoni, you are not fooling
anyone. His utterances at Press conference reveal his inner most thoughts. He talks of a finisher coming at 5,6,7, ie the all powerful Dhoni. But it is Virat Kohli
coming in at NO#3 who is finishing the matches. and his non performance at 5,6,7 doesnt matter at all. Is it possible to forget the scrappy manner in which he would
score.Watching it was sheer agony. How long will you ride on the shoulders of the youngsters who are already taking Indian Cricket to greater heights.?
Honourable Selectors do yourself and the country a great favour. Show M.S Dhoni the door.If he doesnt deseerve a place in the team, why allow him to captain?
Captaincy, batting and wicket keeping will all improve simultaneously when he is kicked out of the team. By persisting with him after this series also, you will
be doing Virat Kohli, a great injustice. Virat is not like his predecessor. Enough is enough. ACT NOW.
