'Raina needs a break from cricket' - Dhoni

MS Dhoni, the India captain, has said that Suresh Raina needs a break from cricket, and if he doesn't get it after the first two ODIs against New Zealand, he might have to be replaced for the first Test in South Africa, which begins on December 16.

Dhoni was specifically asked whether Raina would be replaced at Centurion by Cheteshwar Pujara or M Vijay if he didn't have a break for the last three one-day matches against New Zealand. "If he doesn't get a break in the ODI series [after the first 2 games] then you have to [replace him]," Dhoni said. "He is at a point where he needs a break from cricket."

"A 10 to 15-day break will really help him. He has played as much cricket as I have or most of other cricketers. He has played one more series in Zimbabwe. At times international cricket really drains you. More than the physical part it's always that mental part that is important. Unfortunately, most of the senior players are missing from the ODI series which means he had to play."

Raina struggled during the Test series against New Zealand, scoring 26 runs in four innings, and was named in the squad for the first two one-dayers. There is only a five-day gap between the end of the ODI series against New Zealand and the start of the first Test in South Africa.

Dhoni said India had toyed with the idea of resting Raina for the Nagpur Test against New Zealand but decided to play him in the hope that he might be rested. "One of the options was to give him a rest during the last Test match, but we thought he was most likely to get a break in the ODIs, so we played him in the Test.

"Unfortunately, he is not getting a break in the ODIs also. So, it's a bit tough on him. If he does well, hopefully he will get an opportunity to get a bit of rest in the last few ODI games. It will come to how the performance is in the first two ODIs."

Five players - Sachin Tendulkar, Dhoni, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan and Virender Sehwag- were rested from the ODI series. When asked why Raina wasn't rested, if that's what he needs, Dhoni said he didn't know "what to answer to that question".

"I have said more than physical it's the mental thing. Physically he is not suffering. Once you start doing well in the Test, especially if you are part of the Indian team, the pressure of performance is always there on you every time you turn up on the field. You have to keep performing and being the leading fielder, it means you have to keep yourself very active in the field. Its very tiring. We have to keep that in the mind."

Rahul Dravid offered some support to Raina, saying his performances in ODIs proved what a destructive player he can be. "We all recognise that he is a terrific talent," Dravid said. "Test cricket is a hard school and I think he will be better off from these experiences . He is a good player and big knocks are around the corner. He is going through a tough run at the moment and hopefully he will get it right in South Africa."