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The Mahi Way

Published

8 years ago

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The Mahi Way

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]MSD move surprising, but not unwelcome

By Prabir Biswas

“Mahi” (Mahendra Singh Dhoni), as he is affectionately and reverentially referred to by his colleagues in the team as well as the cricketing fraternity, took his critics, fans as well as the selectors by surprise last week.

The Ranchi lad—who had inspired a new generation of cricketers, heralded yet another “golden period” in India cricket’s history and shepherded teammates for long (nine years) to achieve laurels for themselves and the country—decided last week that enough was enough and it was time to make way for Virat Kohli to take over reins of all formats. Dhoni the captain’s era was over.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]His decision came in only days before he was to sit with the selectors and decide the Final 16 for the ensuing limited overs’ games against England. But “Captain Cool” was only following his script after what he had done in Australia in December 2014 by quitting as Test captain out of the blue in the middle of an ongoing series. The reasons are, of course, different.

Virat’s ascendancy as a “total” cricketer (both as a batsman and captain) was probably not lost on Dhoni—himself a keen observer of the game. Dhoni, who had himself persisted with the then promising-yet-struggling Virat in 2012 for the Test team against Australia, was convinced that it was now Virat’s turn to lead the team in all formats of the game. The Delhi batsman’s brilliant form and captaincy record ( 13 wins in 21 Tests) made it easy for him to take the decision. Virat in the recent past has established himself as a distinct leader of the pack and his clout, popularity and acceptability in the dressing room was too obvious to ignore. He was mentoring the team as Dhoni had done so after taking over as captain. It is being rightly said that Dhoni had realised that it was Virat’s team.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]The frequent “subtle” indications from officials that he should now hang his boots as a captain were perhaps too strong for Dhoni to ignore. The issue was informally “discussed” with chairman of selectors MSK Prasad a few days before the announcement came in. The man who could read the cricket pitch like his palms and make “fatal” bowling and fielding changes for the opposition, could not be wrong in his judgment on this count.

dhoni-_bcci-1Captaincy takes its toll on cricketers, more so if you are a wicket-keeper batsman. Being on the wrong side of 30s, Dhoni knew that the task would get tougher and tougher – although he has managed to retain his fitness levels and could still give any youngster in the Indian team a run for his money. That he has managed to don both the roles (captain and wicket-keeper batsman) commendably and with aplomb for so long is legendary and only a handful of players have done so in cricket. Farokh Engineer was one, but he held the captaincy for a short period. Kumara Sangakkara, Brendan McCullum and Andy Flower were others who succeeded in this difficult task.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Demands of captaincy (that too a winning captain) was casting its shadow on Dhoni’s exploits with the bat. The man who is considered in world cricket as the greatest finisher of the game (in shorter formats) wasn’t doing justice to his potential and record. Fault lines had started appearing on his performance. The “impregnable” and “he-could-do- no-wrong-with-the-bat” image was slowly but surely taking a beating. The ODI team under him had lost 11 and won 10 matches after the 2015 World Cup.

Keeping up his reputation as a swashbuckling batsman (that was what made him into a star before he was anointed captain) was perhaps occupying the mind of Dhoni. The same happened with Sunil Gavaskar in 1985; Sachin Tendulkar in 2000 and Rahul Dravid in 2007. With no captaincy encumbrances, Dhoni can now continue to chart his course ably as a top one-day batsman for the next few years of his playing career and claim a place in the team in World Cup 2019 in England. He has only resurrected his chances for the 2017 Champions Trophy, the 2019 50-over World Cup in England, and the 2020 T-20 World Cup in Australia.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]By quitting Tests as captain, Dhoni was only a senior player in the Test team under Virat, but an undisputed leader in other formats of the game. That probably would have been a tad “confusing” and not clutter-free for the new crop of players emerging in the Indian team. Moreover, India is not used to and “uncomfortable” having different captains for different versions of the game, a la Australia.

It is not an unseemly transition from Captain Cool to a cool customer with the bat. Best of luck to Mahi.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

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Shubman Gill didn’t deserve to be India T20I captain: Amit Mishra

Published

4 months ago

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July 16, 2024

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World Cup 2023: Shubman Gill hospitalized at Chennai’s Kaveri hospital due to low platelet count

Indian leg spinner Amit Mishra has criticised the decision to make Shubman Gill the captain of India’s T20 team.

In a podcast, Mishra said Gill has no idea of what it means to be a captain and is ignorant of the importance of the captain’s role. Mishra said he didn’t feel Gill could do justice to the responsibility of being a captain in the recently concluded T20I series against Zimbabwe.

He suggested Ruturaj Gaikwad was a better option. He said there is a sense that Gaikwad has been ignored by the BCCI and national selectors to support Gill. Even Gaikwad was overlooked as a backup player for the T20 World Cup 2024 and then for India’s captaincy in Zimbabwe.

Mishra didn’t hesitate in saying he wouldn’t have appointed Gill captain for the Zimbabwe series. He admitted the decision had surprised him.

Mishra clarified that he is not someone who hates Gill but believed that if someone was doing well that person deserved a chance and respect, like Gaikwad.

During the IPL, Mishra said Gaikwad as captain of Chennai Super Kings had scored vital runs in many different situations. He has the hallmark of a complete player and needs to be rewarded in ODIs and Tests as well.

Most important thing is that he brings calm to the team and doesn’t make such risky shots, Mishra said in his evaluation of the performances of Gill and Gaikwad in IPL matches.

Mishra said the other captaincy options were Sanju Samson and Rishabh Pant. He said these three, including Gaikwad, are players who can lead India in T20Is.

The leggie also spoke on several other controversial topics including the row involving Sanjeev Goenka and KL Rahul during the IPL and the fraught dynamics between Virat Kohli and Gautam Gambhir.

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After Kapil Dev’s appeal, Jay Shah directs BCCI to provide Rs 1 crore financial assistance for Anshuman Gaekwad in cancer battle

Anshuman Gaekwad is battling blood cancer.

Published

4 months ago

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July 14, 2024

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A few days after India’s World Cup-winning captain Kapil Dev’s appeal, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Secretay Jay Shah has instructed the cricket board to release Rs 1 crore with immediate effect to provide financial assistance to India’s veteran cricketer Anshuman Gaekwad, who is battling blood cancer.

According to BCCI Apex Council, Shah has also spoken to Gaekwad’s family and took stock of the situation and provided assistance.

In the statement, the Council has stated that the board stands by Gaekwad’s family in this hour of crisis and will do whatever is essential for Gaekwad’s quick recovery. The BCCI will continue to monitor Gaekwad’s progress and is confident that he will come out of this phase strongly, the BCCI Apex Council further said.

Earlier, speaking to a Sports channel, Kapil said that he had written to BCCI requesting to lend financial support to Gaekwad, who is battling blood cancer alone and said he is ready to donate his pension to help him.

He further said that his former teammates such as Mohinder Amarnath, Sunil Gavaskar, Sandeep Patil, Dilip Vengsarkar, Madan Lal, Ravi Shastri and Kirti Azad have been generating funds to help Gaikwad, who has been undergoing treatment for the past year at King’s College Hospital in London.

Kapil showed his confidence in the BCCI going to take a look into the matter and extend its help to support the former India head coach Gaekwad financially. Kapil said he was saddened and depressed because he had played alongside Gaekwad and couldn’t bear to see him in this situation. No one should suffer, he added.

The cricket legend said he knows the Board will take care of him and not compel anyone. Any help for Anshu should come from the heart. Kapil further said that Anshu took blows to his face and chest when standing up to some of the ferocious fast bowlers. “Now is the time for us to stand up for him. I am sure our cricket fans will not fail him. They should pray for his recovery,” Kapil added.

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India unlikely to travel to Pakistan for Champions Trophy next year

Published

4 months ago

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July 11, 2024

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The Indian cricket team is not likely to travel to Pakistan for the Champions Trophy in 2025. The BCCI told the media on Thursday that it will ask the ICC to host matches in Sri Lanka, Dubai in a hybrid model. The Indian team has not travelled to Pakistan since 2008 the two teams have played against each other only at multi team events. The last Asia Cup was hosted in Pakistan but India played all their matches in Sri Lanka under a Hybrid model which had been set by the organisers.

The Indian cricket team claimed that the Indian government has not granted permission to visit Pakistan for the Asia Cup. The marquee tournament is scheduled from February 19 to March 9, 2025 (Reserve Day). Pakistan has not hosted any major international tournament since 1996, but in 2025 they will be hosting the Champions Trophy.

The two nations have not played bilateral cricket with each other since the 2012-2013 season. The ICC head of events Chris Tetley met the PCB chairman Naqvi in Islamabad and inspected the other arrangement. The Pakistan Cricket Board has allocated approximately Rs 17 billion for the upgradation of stadiums in Karachi, Lahore, and Rawalpindi for 50 over Marquee Stadium, featuring over 8 teams.

According to reports the Pakistan Cricket Board had planned a match between India and Pakistan in Lahore on March 1, 2025 and the Chairman of Pakistan Cricket Broad Mohsin Naqvi had submitted a report of the 15 matches. But the BCCI has not given any confirmation about the Champions Trophy since touring Pakistan is a big concern for the Indian government.

On May 6, Rajeev Shukla, the Vice President of the BCCI told the media that they will do whatever the Government of India tells them to do. He further added that they will send the Indian team only once they get permission from the government of India.

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