MS Dhoni is an Absolute Must for 2019 World Cup - Sunil Gavaskar

India legend Sunil Gavaskar feels former India skipper MS Dhoni is an absolute must for his country in the upcoming ICC 2019 World Cup next year in England.

Meanwhile, Dhoni has attracted criticism following his poor show in the tour of England and Asia Cup. He struggled to get going and has been under the radar of the criticisers for some time now. Arguably the best finisher of the game, MS Dhoni, even at 37, has a lot to offer and heaps of experience. However, when compared to his self from before, Dhoni’s abilities have reduced with the bat.

Thus many believe it is time for selectors to look beyond the wicketkeeper-batsman. Despite all that, Dhoni remains an asset for Team India behind the stumps. Not only does he execute lightning-quick stumpings and cheeky run-outs, but he’s also the main man when it comes to setting fields for bowlers and guiding them time and again on how to bowl to a particular batsman.

Sunil Gavaskar believes it is these qualities which makes MS Dhoni an invaluable member in the World Cup squad.

“Virat needs (Dhoni). There’s no doubt about it. In 50 overs where there is that much more time, that’s when MSD comes into play. You know he makes those small field adjustments, talking to the bowlers in Hindi – telling them where to bowl and what to bowl. It’s a huge plus for Virat,” Gavaskar said to Star Sports.

However, the selectors recently omitted MS Dhoni from the T20 squad against Windies and Australia. The selectors have maintained that they have rested Dhoni considering that he has played a lot of cricket in recent times. While Virat Kohli has a lot of experience by his side, Sunil Gavaskar feels MS Dhoni brings a lot more to the team.

“MSD is an absolute must for the 2019 World Cup. But having said that, I believe, the way Rohit Sharma has come to the party as a captain, as a thinker, as a planner. He has been brilliant. With Rohit coming in and also Ajinkya Rahane, Virat has a couple more shoulders to lean on. Therefore, I think this [is a] move to have MS Dhoni take a break from T20I cricket,” he concluded.