Anil Kumble
Anil Kumble. (Credits: Getty Images)

The debate on Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s future with the Indian team keeps on magnifying with each passing day, especially with 2019 coming to an end. Former Indian Test captain and head coach Anil Kumble is the latest to pitch in his opinion about the legendary wicketkeeper-batsman. The 132-Test veteran feels that MS Dhoni’s form in the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) would be a decisive factor if he is willing to continue to play for the national side.

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The former Indian captain and one of the prominent figures in Indian cricket in this decade, has not donned the national colours since India exited from the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019. Batting at number seven, the gloveman scored a vital half-century in the semi-final against New Zealand. However, he was run-out at a crucial stage of the game, leading to India losing it by 18 runs. But he strongly hinted that he would turn out for Chennai Super Kings in the forthcoming season.

Cricketers Who Owe Their Career Success To MS Dhoni
MS Dhoni (Getty Images)

In his absence, the likes of Rishabh Pant and Sanju Samson have been looked as his successors. The former has come under fire on numerous occasions for underperforming with the bat and behind the stumps. However, the selectors are likely to persist with him in the long-term. And Sanju Samson, while an able player, has remained on the sidelines. Amid this, Kumble conceded that India would have to decide whether they need Dhoni for the T20 World Cup in Australia based on his performance in the IPL.

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“It’s all about how MS (Dhoni) goes about the IPL and if at all the Indian team believes that they need this services for the World Cup then from there on he may be a part of the team. But we will have to wait and see,” Kumble said as quoted by Times Now.

Kumble highlights the bowling strategy India needs to adopt for the World T20:

Anil Kumble | ICC Cricket Committee |
Anil Kumble (Photo by Francois Nel/Getty Images)

The 49-year old further stated that the selectors need to choose specialist bowlers for the marquee event down under instead of all-rounders. He particularly backed the likes of Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal mainly because in case the dew comes to play, wrist-spinners can gain relatively more assistance.

“I certainly believe that you need wicket-taking bowlers and someone like a Kuldeep and Chahal need to be a part of that in my view. Yes, there are instances where you know the ball gets wet because of the dew, then is it right for two wrist-spinners to be there. It is very important that you need to start looking out for wicket-taking options. If it means that you need to bring in just fast bowlers who you believe will pick up wickets, rather than looking at all-rounders, which I think this team is looking for; I think that’s the critical aspect,” Kumble added.

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Post the 2019 World Cup, India played three T20Is against West Indies at their home where they won by 3-0 margin. After that they played South Africa in the three-match series which went in a draw. Following that, they played Bangladesh and West Indies visited India for three T20Is each which they won by 2-1 margin each. Virat Kohli’s men start 2020 by playing three T20Is against Sri Lanka in India in a bid to further prepare for the T20 World Cup.

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