Reports | MS Dhoni no more an automatic pick, might lose place in the team
Indian wicket-keeper and former skipper MS Dhoni, who had a rather indifferent World Cup, is no more assured of a place in the team, according to reports. Dhoni's future with the team has been a hot topic of discussion, with the squad for India's upcoming tour of the West Indies set to be named.
There are very few players in Indian Cricket who are more respected and trusted than MS Dhoni. While the whole of India is disappointed that he wasn't able to take the country home in their clash against New Zealand, with certain people even calling for his retirement, he statistically still had a good outing at the World Cup, scoring 273 runs at an average just under 46.Â
But with youngsters like Rishabh Pant and Ishan Kishan lurking on the sidelines, the cries for Dhoni's retirement are at an all-time high, and according to a reports, Dhoni's place in the starting XI is no more a certainty, and there might be every chance of the veteran getting dropped in favour of youngsters.Â
According to a source close to the BCCI, chief selector MSK Prasad is all set to have 'make or break' talks with the Indian wicket-keeper and is set to convince him to hang his boots from International Cricket altogether.Â
“We’re surprised that he’s not done it so far. There are youngsters like Rishabh Pant waiting to grab their chances. As we saw in the World Cup, Dhoni isn’t the same batsman anymore. Despite coming in at No. 6 or 7, he was struggling to force the pace, and it was hurting the team,” a source close to the BCCI was quoted as saying by Times of India.Â
While a certain set of people believe that Dhoni might call it quits post the 2020 T20 World Cup, it is believed that the veteran is not in the scheme of things for the mega event, and might not get into the squad for the upcoming tour of West Indies, as he is no more considered to be an automatic pick.Â
“I don’t think he’s in the selectors’ plan for the 2020 T20 World Cup too. He must quit international cricket gracefully. He isn’t an automatic pick any more,” said the source.
Till date, there has been no communication from Dhoni to his teammates about this retirement, but the source believes that the 38-year-old must call it a day, stating that there's nothing left for him to prove in the International stage.Â
“We didn’t want to distract him, and he too must have wanted the team, and himself, to be focused on the Cup. But the time to take a call is now. He has nothing left to achieve or prove in international cricket anymore,” he said.
Amidst all the chaos and backlash, post India's exit from the World Cup, it is not just Dhoni's career which has come under the scanner, but skipper Virat Kohli's captaincy too. A prominent former Cricketer has questioned Kohli's captaincy stating that accountability had to start from the top for a not-so-successful World Cup campaign. He was also certain that Dhoni won't be picked for India ever again.Â
“I’m certain that Dhoni is not going to be picked for India again. It’s high time he calls it a day,” the former cricketer was quoted as saying by Times of India.Â
“In fact, I think even Virat Kohli’s captaincy could be reviewed. This campaign wasn’t successful by any standards. Accountability has to start from the top,” he added.Â