Dhoni hits nets running ahead of crucial ODI series
THE SPOTLIGHT THOUGH WAS ON THE 36YEAROLD DHONI. HE WARMED UP BY FACING DIFFERENT BOWLERS IN THE NETS, BOTH INDIAN AND LOCAL SRI LANKAN BOWLERS
DAMBULLA: Former captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni was the centre of attention as India’s ODI specialists enjoyed their first training session here on Thursday.
It was an optional session where Dhoni, Kedar Jadhav, Manish Pandey, Shardul Thakur, Yuzvendra Chahal and Jasprit Bumrah looked like hitting the right notes ahead of what will be the start of a long limitedovers’ engagement for India.
The spotlight though was on the 36-year-old Dhoni, who now has to fend off questions about his future with alarming regularity. He warmed up by facing different bowlers in the nets, both Indian and local Sri Lankan bowlers.
Initially, he looked a bit rusty, given that he has not played competitive cricket for almost a month now.
But he shrugged it off easily and played some handsome shots against both the pacers and spinners, warming up for the challenges ahead.
Chief selector MSK Prasad had said Dhoni can’t take his position in the team for granted. So this series against Sri Lanka would be crucial for him.
It is never easy to judge a batsman like Dhoni on form, as he bats lower down the order. But there are several innings that showed he isn’t done yet.
It was his partnership with Yuvraj Singh at Cuttack against England where both turned back the clock to hit hundreds. Then in the match against Sri Lanka in the Champions Trophy, Dhoni helped push the score past 300 after the Indian top-order faltered.
Yet, there is no denying that the former skipper has looked a pale shadow of his past glorious self on many occasions, the last of which was in West Indies recently, when he scored a painful 54 off 114 in the fourth ODI at Antigua again as India lost the game by 11 runs.
Dhoni continues to maintain an impactful presence in the Indian dressing room. Much of it is to do with his high standards of fitness, comparable to the youngsters and certainly miles ahead of the likes of Yuvraj and Suresh Raina.
Then there is the experience that he brings to the table. He is on the button with the usage of DRS and his inputs on changing bowlers have been appreciated by Virat Kohli himself.
Nowthough, Dhoni returns to the Indian side looking to answer a few questions about his impending future.