Mahendra Singh Dhoni will go down in history as one of the greatest players in the ODI format, says India head coach Ravi Shastri.

"He'll (Dhoni) go down as one of the greatest one-day players the world has ever seen. And when you have that kind of experience, the level of fitness and what he's maintained. And like I said, there is no substitute for experience. That cannot be bought or sold in the market," Shastri told India Today.

Ravi Shastri and captain Virat Kohli have defended MS Dhoni fiercely, despite critics taking aims at Dhoni’s diminishing hitting ability in the end overs.

“When it comes to finishing a game or batting in the final overs, there have been very few better than him in the history of the game. When you have that cushion of someone like him coming at No. 5, 6 or even 7 it makes a big big difference," Shastri added.

Even former India captain and current Cricket Association of Bengal President Sourav Ganguly termed MS Dhoni as one of the greatest.

"What Virat Kohli has done for MS Dhoni is a learning experience for everyone," Ganguly told India Today.

“Not many times in teams do current captains look after the former captains like this. There have been times when former captains have been pushed aside. But Kohli, that's why for me, is such a fantastic leader. He creates a team, he builds a team and he takes everyone along. Look at the faith he has in Dhoni, in Rohit Sharma, in Shikhar Dhawan and in Hardik Pandya. So, I keep saying as long as Kohli as leader of Team India, I have got lot of hopes from this side," he said.