The Story:
MS Dhoni recent form has caused many critics to go underground. For the most of this season, Dhoni seemed off colours and provided the opportunity for many to write – off his abilities slowly.
However, as witnessed in some of the recent matches, MS Dhoni seems to have reinvented himself. His ability to win games for India is still at its best. But, while the rejuvenation of his image may be taking place, the debate surrounding his batting position remains unclear.
Clarke gives his Opinion
Former Australia skipper Michael Clarke feels India has no reason to worry about MS Dhoni’s batting position considering that everything is well-settled currently.
“I would prefer to have Dhoni batting at No. 5. With Virat Kohli at No. 3 and Dhoni at No. 5, the youngsters in the team can bat around them. In my book, Dhoni is one of the best middle-order players to have played one-day cricket.”
“He knows how to read an innings, sums up the conditions and sets up the game, or wins it for his team. How many times have we seen him do that? And let’s not forget that he is still the best wicket-keeper in the world.”
Clarke himself has operated at the No.4 position for the most of his career. The right-hander had immense success in both Tests and ODIs in this slot. Speaking about the difference of batting at no. 4 and lower down the order, he felt there’s nothing to be stressed upon with regards to the batting position in the limited-overs format.
“In a 50-over game, it doesn’t matter what position you are in. What matters is the match situation and how many overs are left. He assessed the situation very well in Chennai and batted beautifully.”
How to Cope with Spin?
Australia is once again surrounded with the “ability to face spin” questions. In the first match, it was evident that they haven’t done their homework properly as the wrist spinning duo of Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal troubled them greatly in Chennai.
“I think most Australian players are not picking Kuldeep Yadav. Look, the key to playing spin bowling is to pick which way the ball is going. The best way is to read it early from the bowler’s hand.”
“There wasn’t one spinner I couldn’t pick out of their hand, Murali [Muttiah Muralitharan] and Warnie [Shane Warne] included. The idea is to keep watching the ball as closely as you can. As they say, you’ve got to see it to hit it.”