MS Dhoni Is An Asset To The Indian Team: Ravi Shastri

Throwing his support behind Mahendra Singh Dhoni again, Team India head coach has called the veteran wicketkeeper-batsman an asset to the Indian team and an elder statesman in the dressing-room.

Prior to the recently-concluded series in Sri Lanka, Dhoni was going through a tough time in international cricket. The World Cup-winning captain had managed only 278 runs in 13 matches at an average of 27.80 in 2016 and his performances in the ongoing year were not very promising either.

The World Cup-winning captain began 2017 with a stupendous 134-run knock against England but  struggled to dish out consistent performance thereafter. Pressure only mounted on him when his 108-ball 54 runs knock saw India losing a low-scoring match against West Indies. With World Cup just a couple of years away, several former cricketers urged the selectors to take a call on Dhoni but the 36-year old has given a fitting reply to one and all with his brilliant performance in Sri Lanka.

One  of the best limited-overs player for India, his scores in Sri Lanka read 45*, 67*, 49* and one with the first two coming in pressure chases as he played a big part in the historic 5-0 victory.  During the series, he also becomes the sixth Indian player to play 300 ODIs before becoming the first-ever wicketkeeper to affect 100 stumpings in the 50-over format.

And with Dhoni managing to silence his critics, head coach Shastri has also backed the star player.

“Dhoni is still the best wicketkeeper in the world and he is the quickest. The break from Test cricket has been great for Dhoni. He is an asset to the Indian team. He is an elder statesman in the dressing room,” Shastri told India Today.

Earlier this month, Shastri had said that Dhoni is not even “half finished yet” and is very much in the scheme of things for the 2019 World Cup in England.

“MS Dhoni is a massive influence on the team. He is a living legend in the dressing room and an ornament to the game. By no means or by any stretch of imagination he is finished or even half finished yet,” Shastri had said. “If anyone thinks so, they are mistaken and they have another one coming. There are in for some surprises. The old dog has plenty to offer.”

“He is the best in the country. Would you look to replace Sunil Gavaskar when he was 36 years old or Sachin Tendulkar when he was 36? Dhoni is still the best in the business, so what is the need to even entertain those thoughts,” he had added.