MS Dhoni: From Captain Cool To Captain Fuming

MS Dhoni: From Captain Cool To Captain Fuming: The sordid collision with the young Bangladeshi pacer in the first ODI and in the post match press conference after the first ever series defeat to Bangladesh uttering the words in exasperation that he is always the one who is responsible for anything bad that happens in Indian cricket, one has never seen ‘CAPTAIN COOL’ being so HOT in his decade long career.

Clearly the MSD we saw in the first two matches isn’t the one we have known for years, the man who remains unbelievably calm in even the most nerve wrecking situations, the man who has come out of Spot fixing STORM and the 8 consecutive test losses overseas almost unfazed is finally feeling the heat or is being made to feel the heat by the media.

Change of personnel in BCCI

The BCCI is no longer in hands of N. Srinivasan who was very close to MS Dhoni and with this change in BCCI, Dhoni doesn’t enjoy the same backing of the board what he used to enjoy once. In the recent past there were reports in media about selectors wanting to sack Dhoni as a Test skipper in 2012 but the then BCCI President backed the skipper and hence he hung on to his captaincy position perhaps in reply to these reports Dhoni said in the press conference he was never in line for the captaincy job when he got it, it was a job or responsibility for him and if they want to take it away from me I will gladly play as a player.

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Loss of Form

Whenever the team has been in a spot of bother due to on field or off field reasons, his performance on the field has overshadowed the crisis but the situation presently is completely different his batting form hasn’t been of the high standard he has set for himself and his strike rate as a finisher has gone down remarkably in the last couple of years from a dasher or a belligerent hitter of the cricket ball he has became more of a nudger and a grinder. However in spite of this poor form he averages more than 50 in the last couple of years and he is still among the best finisher in the world right now so his place in the playing XI is never in doubt but there are dark clouds hovering over his captaincy. So should he continue as a skipper or it is about time he hands over the reign to the dynamic Virat?

Is it time for the change of captaincy?

After the loss to Australia in the semifinal of the World Cup Dhoni categorically mentioned he will decide on his future as an ODI cricketer after the 2016 T20 World Cup in India and irrespective of the result in that tournament that will be the most apt time to transfer the responsibility of captaincy from Dhoni’s shoulders onto Virat’s.

As the next 50 over World Cup is distant away, Virat will have substantial time to inflict the kind of attitude and team culture on the team and depending upon Dhoni’s performance and willingness to play he will take a call on his retirement.

MS Dhoni ’s Contribution

The triumph of the 2007 T20 WC, 2011 World Cup and 2013 Champions Trophy are probably among the 5 all time best moments in Indian cricket history and MS Dhoni being the leader has been imperative to all these successes, the waving of flag in jingoism on roads after the 2011 WC victory probably won’t have been possible without MSD so to demean a man who almost singlehandedly changed the fortunes of Indian Cricket is shameful and amateur.

He averages more than 80 at number 3 position and close to 70 at number 4 still he bats at 5 or 6 most of the times, putting team goals ahead of his personal goals he has been one of the most selfless cricketers of the modern era.

Youngsters like Virat, Rohit, Shikhar, Raina, Shami, Ashwin, Jadeja, Umesh and Ajinkya have all flourished under his leadership, he has groomed them, backed them to the core and is a pivotal reason behind what they have achieved today yet he never gets credit for it neither does he ask for it; he only gets ridicule for backing Jadeja who is going through a lean patch.

As Ganguly rightly pointed out one would only understand the significance of MS Dhoni after he retires, he is not a man who will ever become burden on the team he will silently sign off before that happens as he did in TEST Cricket before this LEGEND retires instead of disrespecting and ridiculing him enjoy watching his Legendary figure as we won’t have the privilege of watching anyone alike him.

Also Read – Why MS Dhoni has lot of Haters in his own Country? Decoding the Myths and Fallacies