'MS Dhoni will be back only if he has a good IPL' - New selection committee has same stance on the former Indian skipper

It seems the future of ace wicket-keeper-batsman Mahendra Singh Dhoni has not undergone much of a change after the national selection panel has seen a major change. Under the new leadership of former India spinner Sunil Joshi, the panel still believes that the 38-year-old Dhoni will “have to perform” in the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) if he harbours a hope to feature in the T20 World Cup in Australia later this year.

On Sunday, the Joshi-led panel, which also has a new member in Harvinder Singh, met for the first time in Ahmedabad to pick the Indian squad for the three-match ODI series against South Africa at home starting March 12. The trio of Hardik Pandya, Shikhar Dhawan and Bhuveshwar Kumar — who have been out of the national team for some time because of injuries — were picked. Dhoni was not picked though and Rishabh Pant continued to keep his position.

Dhoni, who led India to the world titles in T20 in 2007 and 50 overs in 2011, has not played international cricket for eight months now. His last appearance for India was in the semi-final of the 50-over World Cup in England last year where he played a heroic knock but yet could not take his team to the final. The fans are now looking forward to his return in IPL 2020 where he will lead Chennai Super Kings (CSK).

“It was a pretty straightforward selection meeting and since Dhoni was obviously not in the reckoning this time (for South Africa series), there was no formal talk about his future,” the Indian Express cited agencies quoting a BCCI source as saying. The previous chairman of the selection committee, MSK Prasad, had said that Indian cricket has decided to move on from Dhoni.

A good IPL can only see MS Dhoni getting relevant again

“He will be back in the reckoning only if he has a good IPL. And why only him, there are so many senior and young players who will play in the IPL. If they do well, they are ought to be considered too. So, you could see some surprise inclusions.”

The IPL will kick off on March 29 with the finalists of the 2019 edition — Chennai and Mumbai Indians — locking horns at the Wankhede Stadium.

Dhoni’s supporters still harbour the hopes that he will feature in the Indian squad that will be picked for the World Cup Down Under even though he has been dropped from the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s central contracts recently. The ace cricketer will also turn 39 by then but still, the die-hard fans believe that one good IPL could catapult the man right into the centre of all attractions.