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MS Dhoni not the player that he used to be: Mohammad Azharuddin
Dhoni’s inability to finish off games successfully has drawn criticism from many quarters with one of them being former Indian skipper Mohammad Azharuddin.
Published: Oct 12, 2015, 12:11 PM (IST)
Edited: Oct 12, 2015, 12:12 PM (IST)
Mahendra Singh Dhoni is widely regarded as one of the greatest finishers limited-overs cricket has seen but off late it seems that his ability to successfully seal games have caught a bit of rust. One classic example was visible on Sunday during India’s first One-Day International (ODI) against South Africa at Kanpur. India were at a commanding position for most of the time in the chase but the Indian skipper couldn’t finish it off. [Also Read: MS Dhoni to quit cricket; to run for India in Olympics now]
India required 11 from their final over and Dhoni wasn’t able to finish it off. It’s not the first time in recent times that this happened. Dhoni’s inability to finish off games successfully has drawn criticism from many quarters with one of them being former Indian skipper Mohammad Azharuddin. [Also Read: India vs South Africa: Moods and moments from the 1st ODI at Kanpur]
A report from PTI quoted Azharuddin saying, “He (Dhoni) is the captain and there will be tremendous pressure on him. If he doesn’t perform, selectors will have to think about him. He is not the player he used to be. Obviously to make an impact he has to come up the order. Once the dressing room finds captain doing what he is required to do, others will follow him.” [Also Read: Dhoni hails PM Modi’s “Badal=Mandela” remark, says good mind game to choke Proteas ahead of 2nd ODI]
The stylish former Hyderabadi batsman also dismissed the term ‘finisher’ as being overrated and added, “I don’t understand what exactly does this word finisher means. Everyone needs to have match finishing skills. Do you mean you require 50 runs to win and someone batting on 70 plus should leave it on someone else. If you are at the crease then it’s your duty to finish the game for India.” [Also Read: Pick of the tweets: India vs South Africa, 1st ODI at Kanpur]
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Azharuddin also criticised Team India’s move to bench Anjinkya Rahane in the Twenty20 International (T20I) series and called the Mumbai batsman the best in the side after Virat Kohli.