Dhoni didn't participate in the West Indies and South Africa series after the World Cup.
Amid speculations on his cricket future, it has been learnt that MS Dhoni is nursing an injury and that’s why he is unavailable for selection at the moment.
BCCI sources told The Indian Express that Dhoni went to the World Cup with a back niggle that got aggravated during the course of the tournament. Moreover, the veteran wicketkeeper sustained a wrist injury during the quadrennial event and he is expected to be fit by November.
After India’s World Cup campaign, Dhoni took a two-month sabbatical from the game, which saw Dhoni missing the West Indies and South Africa series. In the meantime, he had a two-week stint with the Para Regiment of the Indian Army in Kashmir.
Dhoni, 38, might still be physically fit but the back injury has been troubling him for some time now. During the 2018 edition of IPL, he had spoken about the injury after playing a knock of 79 against Kings XI Punjab.
“It’s bad. How bad it is, I don’t know,” Dhoni had said.
Earlier this year, during the IPL, the CSK skipper had said his back was holding up.
“The back is holding up, it’s not getting worse, with the World Cup coming up, can’t afford that, because that’s too important.”
As far as the Indian team management is concerned – Dhoni still not completely out from the scheme of things.
Ahead of the T20I series opener against South Africa in Dharamsala, skipper Virat Kohli had said: “One great thing about him is that, he thinks for Indian cricket. And whatever we (team management) think, he is on the same page. The alignment is there. The kind of mindset he has had about grooming youngsters and giving them opportunities, and he is still the same person.”
(Inputs from The Indian Express)