Where Will He Fit In? Asks Virender Sehwag As He Casts Doubts Over MS Dhoni's Return To Team India

Former India opener Virender Sehwag believes that the current composition of the Indian team will make it difficult for MS Dhoni to make a comeback into the national fold. The former India skipper has not played for the national team since the World Cup semifinal in July last year.

Just few days after the tournament ended, MS Dhoni surprised everyone by taking a sabbatical from the game which was supposed to last for a month. But MS Dhoni decided against ending his sabbatical and he is yet to play a competitive game since the end of India’s World Cup campaign.

The sabbatical would have ended later this month in the Indian Premier League (IPL) but the BCCI has suspended it till at least April 15. The IPL is being as the tournament which could pave the way for MS Dhoni’s return to the national team. India head coach Ravi Shastri had previously said that the wicketkeeper-batsman could be in contention for a spot in the squad for the T20 World Cup if he performs well in the IPL.

Now only time will tell whether the IPL takes place during the pandemic and how MS Dhoni performs in it. But Virender Sehwag believes that his former teammate would struggle to get back into the team. He believes that KL Rahul’s form would make it tough for Dhoni to earn a recall.

“Where will he fit in? With the likes of Rishabh Pant and KL Rahul already in form, especially the latter performing exceptionally well of late, I think there is no reason why we should not stick with them,” Virender Sehwag said.

The legendary batsman further defended Virat Kohli’s poor performance in New Zealand where he scored only 38 runs in the two-Test series which India lost. While Kohli is facing the heat for his poor display, Sehwag has a different opinion.

“He [Kohli] is a class batsman but that has happened to all the great batsmen in different eras be it Sachin Tendulkar, Steven Waugh, Jacques Kallis or Ricky Ponting,” Sehwag said. “We must admit that the Kiwis were superior to us in the ODIs and Tests. In the T20s, Kiwis lost close matches. In the shortest format it is always difficult to make a quick comeback.”

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