Thursday 20 December 2012

India vs England 2012: Dhoni dodges captaincy questions ahead of T20 series


Facing massive criticism after India’s defeat in a 4-match Test series against the touring Englishmen (2-1), India’s Captain, MS Dhoni, refused to answer questions on his future at the helm, during a press-conference ahead of today’s T20 clash in Pune.



Following India’s poor performances in the longest format since over a year (losing 8-0 in away series against England and Australia followed by a 2-1 defeat at home), Dhoni’s leadership was in the line of fire, igniting speculations that a split captaincy approach might be on the cards for the Men in Blue.

“Your question on my view about split captaincy is good but let's stick to T20 format as we have a T20 game tomorrow,” replied Dhoni to a local Indian reporter during the press-conference.

When another similar question was asked by a British journalist, Dhoni answered by saying, “Before the start of an important series, I don't want to comment on that. Because when it comes to Indian cricket, if it's not going the right way, questions pop up about captaincy, senior players, junior players, the kind of talent we have got, the bench strength we have got. Everything will pop up and if you keep answering, I think we will be short of time.”

He shared that looking in to the past will not help the World Champions, but the short series ahead (2 T20 games against England at home) can show a completely different picture.

Taking positives from the devastating Test series, Dhoni hailed performances by Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli. He further added that the Indian spinners did a good job, even on tracks that were not conducive for spin bowling.

However, with the dew factor coming into play during the evening T20 clashes, the spinners might find it harder to grip a wet ball.

Praising the former T20 champions, the 31-year-old feels that the English side will still be very balanced even if their (England’s) spinners don’t prove to be effective during the short contests.

Looking to redeem themselves after the Test series humiliation, the home side will fight hard to bounce back during the T20Is which will be followed by 5 ODIs next month.

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