MS Dhoni once again found himself at the receiving end of criticism for his lack of intent during India’s first defeat in the ongoing World Cup, as they lost to England by 31 runs at Edgbaston.
Chasing 337 on Sunday, India could only manage 306/5 in their full quota of 50 overs with Dhoni and Kedar Jadhav remaining unbeaten on 42 (31 balls) and 12 (13 balls) respectively.
The 37-year-old along with Jadhav, struggled and the duo were only able to fetch 39 in the final 31 balls, which included 20 singles and seven dot deliveries.
“I don’t have an explanation for that. You asked me the question but I can’t explain these singles. It’s also the length and the bounce that has deceived the Indian batsmen. You can’t be chasing 338 and still have five wickets in the end” said Sourav Ganguly.
“It’s about mindset and the way you look at the game. The message had to be clear: no matter where it comes and no matter where the ball lands you have to find the boundary,” said Ganguly while commentating during the last 10 overs of India’s chase.
Nasir Hussain, who was commentating alongside Ganguly, also failed to understand the batting approach adopted by Dhoni in the death overs.
“I am completely baffled. What’s going on! This is not what India needed. They need runs. What are they doing? Some Indian fans are leaving now. Surely they must want to see Dhoni go for his shots, even if he slogs it off in the air. It’s a World Cup game, top two sides, give it a go! Indian fans would want their side to do a little bit more. They want their side to go down with a fight. Risk it to win it,” said Hussain.
Meanwhile, former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar also termed Dhoni’s batting approach as “baffling”.
“If there was any team that had the ability to stop India’s winning run. It was England. Dhoni’s approach in the last few overs however was baffling,” said Manjrekar on Twitter.
