ALL NOT WELL WITH TEAM INDIA : EXPERTS
Shastri’s clear-cut preference for Virat Kohli doesn’t seem to go down well with Dhoni.
It was an unfamiliar sight in Indian cricket to see, the normally self assured and composed, M.S. Dhoni at his shaky worst in the recently concluded ODI series against Bangladesh. To make matters worse, ‘Captain Cool’ Dhoni even offered to resign after the loss in the second ODI. Even for a lot of his fans, his reaction came as a complete shocker. Also, it is quite clear that the rift between Dhoni and Kohli is increasing and that is not doing any good to the Indian captain.
The Sunday Guardian spoke to some cricketers to ascertain the reasons behind a shaky and tentative Dhoni and also the reasons behind the rift.
A lot of cricket experts feel the fact that Indian team was not doing at all well in Bangladesh was the main reason for the internal bickering. “Well I can tell you one thing for sure. If the Indian team had been doing well, there wouldn’t have been any talk of dressing room politics or bickering,” felt a former Indian cricketer.
“I have never seen Dhoni so unsure and shaky. To me it is quite clear that the fact that the India have done poorly in Bangladesh is solely responsible for the ugly happenings,” said the cricketer.
The Ravi Shastri factor also seems to be complicating matters. It is an open fact that Shastri has a clear-cut preference for Virat Kohli and this fact doesn’t seem to go down well with Dhoni. A for- mer Team India captain said that, “Ever since Shastri has joined as the director, he has been favouring Virat and the duo has been controlling the team affairs. Duncan Fletcher’s absence, who was close to Dhoni, has made things tougher for Dhoni. That’s why he (Dhoni) feels isolated.”
Virat Kohli’s “care a damn” attitude and his direct approach is also causing a lot of problems. In a recent TV interview after India lost the second ODI, he directly attacked captain Dhoni’s tactics. He went to the extent of saying, “We have been doubtful in our decision- making and that shows on the field. I don’t need to say this, cricket watchers and experts can see guys not sure enough to express themselves.” These words were a direct attack on captain MSD. A former Delhi cricketer felt that Virat did not help things one bit by his direct attack on Dhoni. “He should have been more guarded while he spoke to the TV channel,” felt the cricketer.
The fact that Dhoni’s coach also questioned the dressing room environment of the Indian team also did not help matters. Chanchal Bhattacharya claimed that the Indian skipper was unhappy with the current dressing room environment. Airing his views on an English news channel, he said the disunity in the dressing room was one of the reasons why Dhoni was upset. He further added that it was difficult for a player to perform to his full capacity if the mind was not at peace. “There was no reason why he (Chanchal) should have spoken about the Indian dressing room. Such comments only add to the confusion and serve to widen the rift between Dhoni and Virat,” said a former cricketer.
As if all this was not enough, Ravichandran Ashwin wholeheartedly lent his support to Dhoni. “If you don’t go behind your leader (now) then when will you? So as far as I am concerned it’s like an army, if you don’t go behind your leader then you are definitely going to get shot. If my captain asks me to die on the field, I’ll do it,” the offie said, showing that Team India was indeed a divided house.