Dhoni's Knock Reminded Me of My Infamous 36 Not Out - Sunil Gavaskar

Former India skipper, Sunil Gavaskar recently admitted that MS Dhoni’s knock in the last game against England at Lord’s reminded him of his infamous innings of unbeaten 36.

Meanwhile, Dhoni failed to get going, as India fell 86 runs short in the second ODI. To top it, Dhoni scored 37 runs off 59 balls before getting out in the 47th over. However, India lost three early wickets which pushed them away from the game, as the hosts crawled back.

Gavaskar cited Rohit Sharma’s wicket, as the vital one, as he feels it boosted England’s confidence. He also noted KL Rahul should change his thought process ahead of every game.

“The loss of the previous game’s centurion is always a big boost to the opposition,” he wrote in TOI. “They got a further boost when Dhawan, who is batting well, but a tad carelessly, chased a widish one when India needed a stabilizing partnership. Rahul too has to get his thought process right,” he added.

Gavaskar also admitted the Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah’s absence was quite evident, as India gave away too many runs in the death overs.

“Without Bhuvaneshwar and Bumrah, the final overs are generally a free for all for the opposition batsmen and David Willey played some bold strokes to take England to 322 when they should have been restricted to under 300,” he added

Dhoni’s innings reminded me of my knock

Gavaskar backed Dhoni stating when options become less; you tend to do negative things. He also revealed Dhoni’s knock reminded him of the infamous innings of his.

Gavaskar, in a game against England in 1975, played 174 balls to remain not out on 36 which is by far the slowest innings in an ODI game.

“Dhoni’s struggle was understandable because when confronted with an impossible situation, the options get limited and the mind becomes negative. Then all the good shots go straight to the fielder to add to the dot balls and the pressure becomes too much. Dhoni’s struggle reminded me of my most infamous innings at the same venue,” he continued.

In conclusion, he admitted although it will be a tough ask, India can win the series at Leeds.

Also Read: Sam Billings added to England ODI squad as cover for Jason Roy