Time for Dhoni to answer critics

IN THE hugely-popular biopic titled MS Dhoni: The Untold Story released last year, the 35-year-old is portrayed as the ultimate survivor Indian cricket has ever seen. Over the next two weeks in England, he needs to turn the reel life into a real one. 

Dhoni arrived in England in 2013 at a difficult time when the sport was rocked by the spot-fixing scandal in the Indian Premier League, and his own form was patchy. 

But in space of two weeks, he made critics eat their words as India went on an all-conquering spree to win the title.

And now he is back in England and under more pressure this time. He is not the captain anymore, question marks hang over his match-winning abilities and for the first time there are even eyebrows over his place in the XI,  with emergence of the talented Rishabh Pant (who resembles the Dhoni of early 2000s), who many feel should have been on the plane to England.

Whenever critics have bayed for his blood, Dhoni has answered them in style, like in the 2011 World Cup final when he came ahead of in-form Yuvraj Singh and played a match-winning knock to end India’s 28-year wait for the trophy.

But of late, he has not been in the best of form, his ‘finishing’ abilities are on the wane and he himself has expressed a desire to bat up in the innings instead of his customary No.6 position where he has waged many battles. 

Though Dhoni scoffed at retirement rumours by mocking at an Australian journalist who questioned his longevity after India’s semifinal exit from the 2016 Twenty20 World Cup at home, the maestro is running out of time and needs to turn the clock back and give it all in a tournament that prolonged his captaincy four years ago. dsp

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