India will begin their Asia Cup title defence against Hong Kong on September 18.
Former Indian fast bowler Zaheer Khan believes that MS Dhoni should bat at No.4 in a bid to add some experience and stability in the top of the batting order during the ongoing 2018 Asia Cup in the UAE.
The 39-year-old feels that If India faltered at the beginning of their innings, an experienced batsman like MS Dhoni who has been there and done that for years will control the innings in the middle order and can put the finishing touch to the innings.
In the last few years, India has tried as many as ten batsmen at number 4, but is yet to find someone who can permanently take up the spot and Zaheer believes that Dhoni is an ideal man to occupy this spot in the national side in the six-nation ODI tournament.
Speaking to Harsha Bhogle at Cricbuzz Unplugged, Zaheer suggested on Sunday (September 16), “Someone has to take the responsibility of the number four position and it has to be MS Dhoni. If you take a look at the losses of the Indian team, they haven’t had a good start.”
He signed off by saying, “Once they haven’t got off to a good start, they haven’t been able to recover from a bad start. So you need experience, you need someone who has dealt with such kind of situations and soak in the pressure at that stage, take someone along with him. And that’s something MS Dhoni is brilliant at.”
Rohit Sharma-led Team India will kick off their 2018 Asia Cup campaign against Hong Kong in Dubai on September 18 then will meet arch-rival Pakistan the very next day on September 19.