MS Dhoni does not want to upset the team balance: Jharkhand coach

MS Dhoni was earlier confirmed to play the knockouts of the 2018-19 edition of the Vijay Hazare Trophy and his participation was confirmed by MSK Prasad, the chairman of selectors. However, most recently, the 37-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman opted out of the 50-overs event. He is next scheduled to play the ODI and T20I series against the Windies, starting October 21.

Recently, Ravi Kumar, Jharkhand’s coach revealed the reasons behind Dhoni refraining to play the crunch matches. He said that the seasoned campaigner doesn’t want to disturb the balance of the team, which has done exceedingly well in the ongoing event.

“Dhoni feels that it would not be fair for him to join us at this stage, given that the team has done so well and reached the quarter-final stage in his absence. He does not want to upset the team balance,” the Jharkhand coach was quoted as saying in CricBuzz.

Dhoni struggling in recent times

Jharkhand finished atop the points table of Elite Group C with 32 points courtesy of seven wins from nine matches. They were placed with nine more teams in the group and arguably looked the most formidable team. Jharkhand are now set to play their quarterfinal match against Maharashtra at M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore.

Dhoni last played for Jharkhand in the semi-final of the 2017 edition of the trophy. He captained the team and scored 70 runs, however, couldn’t take his team over the line. In the meantime, He would be looking to find his rhythm back and deliver in the upcoming international fixtures.

His campaigns in the limited-overs series against England and then the Asia Cup haven’t been joyful by any stretch of the imagination. In coloured-clothing cricket, Dhoni has looked nothing, but a pale shadow of his glorious past. He is also expected to play a vital role in next year’s World Cup.

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