Posted by   on (January 6, 2013, 3:27 GMT) - Featured comment

Why not Wriddhiman Saha who is undoubtedly the best keeper in the current lot and performed whatever little chance he got. Few days back, he was considered the backup for Dhoni, but now when it matters he is not called in. How you are going to get the best performance out from the player when you don't show the trust, confidence & honesty? On a side note, I strongly feel Manoj Tiwari and Pujara should play in the XI. Shrikanth & Dhoni had done so much wrong with Tiwari in last couple of years, time has come to give this lad a prolonged run. He may not be that lucky to get 100 odd matches to extract Talent like Dhoni did with Rohit, but Tiwari will do much better for the team whenever you ask him to.

Dhoni does not strike me as someone who would run away from it all. If he had been, he could have followed in the same vein as the rest of his inept batsman in the first two matches (and India would have lost the matches by wider margins). If the Indian media and BCCI are after Dhoni as a scapegoat, they are barking up the wrong tree. The real issue is the inconsistencies of the "so-called" best batting line up in the world. When will Raina, Rohit Sharma, Yuvraj Singh and Virat Kohli start performing consistently ? When will Sehwag and Gambhir realise that their performances are sub-par and step out gracefully to more deserving youngters ? When will the Indian cricket team realise that one-days and tests are not the same as the "flash-and-dash" T20's ? When will BCCI realise that IPL has successfully destroyed the fibre and fundamentals of one-day and test cricket in India ?

India really needed Pujara to do his magic. It is sad that the Indian Selectors & Dhoni managed to keep their best batsman out of the ODI's vs. Pakistan. The results could have been reversed if only India had Pujara & Nadeem in XI. It is too much to wxpect Dhoni to carry out a One Man show!. Once Sehwag & Gambhir were such dominant openers in the World. Sehwag was the scourge of the all pace bowlers. I suppose age has caught up. India need replacements urgently. My biggest question is: How can the Selectors be so brain dead to exclude Pujara?

I am a Pak fan. Dhoni is an exceptional leader. I don't understand all this criticism about him. It amazes me that suddenly majority of people in India have forgotten all his achievements. I still remember that moment in WC 2011 Final, when Dhoni came out to bat before Yuvraj (who in that tournament was in supreme form) but it was a confident decision and risk which only a brave leader like dhoni can think of taking, and not only he took it but he succeeded in that decision. It shows how good Captain Dhoni has been. Not to mention his other achievement like no 1 position in test ranking, beating Aussies in CB series and you can also count 2 IPLs and a CL victories. In successful run chase, he is on top list, and his batting average is excellent. I mean seriously do you want more facts? Wish both teams good luck for tomorrow's match. Wish pak whitewashes ind.

I think Dhoni's problem is that he has relied too heavily on his batsmen while discounting his bowlers time and time again. Do you guys remember the T20 match in the Worldcup against Australia? Dhoni was very upfront that it was because he didn't have a single good bowler. He has very little confidence in the bowlers so he relies on the batting which no doubt India has the best in the world. Unfortunately its not clicking these days.

With that said, I think Dhoni is the BEST captain India has ever had. He is an excellent keeper, excellent batsmen. And I hate it how the Indian media is chasing after him. Even in Pakistan Dhoni is talked with a LOT of respect.