Mahendra Singh Dhoni's first coach Keshav Ranjan Banerjee was delighted to see the old MSD at the Adelaide Oval after he played a match-winning innings to help India to win the second One Day International and level the three-match series against Australia on Tuesday (January 15).
After being overlooked since Asia Cup 2018, Dhoni made a good comeback in Australia, but his Sydney innings of 96-ball 51 were highly criticized by many, though, the wicket-keeper managed to shed his struggle with the bat and played a key role in India’s dramatic win in the second ODI in Adelaide.
He feels that the break refreshed Dhoni for the Australia ODI series and No. 5 is the best position for him in the Indian batting line-up after he struck unbeaten 55 off 54 balls, and stitched two important partnerships of 82 runs with captain Virat Kohli and an unbroken 57-run stand with Dinesh Karthik for the fifth wicket to help India to win the second ODI by six-wickets in Adelaide.
Banerjee told Sportstar, “A break is good for players, and it worked for him. It helps a cricketer sustain his potential, or else, once he is appearing in 15 to 20 matches in a row, the workload takes a toll and it can finish a career. This rotation policy was needed to conserve Dhoni’s energy in the World Cup year.”
He also commented on his Adelaide show, “Today was a chanceless innings. Best time to play one. The run/ball balance was 100percentt. It showed that something is still there in him. There is a lot left to be seen.”
He continued, “This position, No 5, suits him. Not every player can go in and start smashing. He would need to go deep into the game, adjust with the pitch as well as the field set-up. Now he has Dinesh Karthik and Ravindra Jadeja to back him up. When batting at No. 6 or No. 7, he may run out of partners. There is also no guarantee that he will score a 50 in every game.”
Meanwhile, he also dismissed the speculation on Dhoni’s retirement after the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup to be played in England from May 30.
Banerjee signed off by saying, “He is a guy who you can’t beat with insults or criticism. If he thinks it’s his time to leave, he will call it a day. Nothing will bother him.”
(With Sportstar Inputs)
