Dhoni to receive Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna

[Ram]

If anything Tendulkar injured himself while playing the SA series. He could have gone the Dhoni route' date=' skipped the entire SA series, and played IPL to earn more bucks but decided to risk it despite carrying a niggle throughout the Aussie tour.[/quote'] Dont think its fair for ANYONE to say with any kind of authority to say what happened behind the scenes. None of us really know what happened.

[King Tendulkar]

Nothing wrong in taking a preventive measure - why do it during the SL test series because it obviously features lower in the priority list for him. What's wrong in accepting the simple fact?

Spot on its low on his priorities! Why cant people accept its low on his to do list? MM do you accept this?

[Ram]

Spot on its low on his priorities! Why cant people accept its low on his to do list? MM do you accept this?

Or how about 'I am already badly bruised, If I go on for any longer, I will be out 6 months, but I cant afford that because I am caprtain of the ODI, T20 team and I am also its best performing batsman and have massive responsibility on my shoulders'. How about accepting this? Btw, I see that you have conveniently ignored the link where I have showed to you how Dhoni wanted to rest from the Asia cup. That blows another black-hole size hole into your 'Dhoni prefers ODIs to tests' theory.

[King Tendulkar]

Or how about 'I am already badly bruised, If I go on for any longer, I will be out 6 months, but I cant afford that because I am caprtain of the ODI, T20 team and I am also its best performing batsman and have massive responsibility on my shoulders'. How about accepting this? Btw, I see that you have conveniently ignored the link where I have showed to you how Dhoni wanted to rest from the Asia cup. That blows another black-hole size hole into your 'Dhoni prefers ODIs to tests' theory.

Not at all. He could have rested from from asia cup but did not put his foot down. Only put his foot down to rest from tests. And remarkably he be will ok again for odi series against Lanka. Like you said above important to be fit for odi and t20 team. You have answered my question and agreed with me in your post. At least we now agree that tests are low on dhonis priorities as important to be fit for masala games as he is the best perfortming batsman and captain!

[The Outsider]

Dont think its fair for ANYONE to say with any kind of authority to say what happened behind the scenes. None of us really know what happened.

Fact : Dhoni has mentioned the workload and schedule on numerous occasions in the past. Fact : Dhoni chose to skip the SL test series with out being injured. Conclusion : Tests are lower on his priority than the just finished masala ODIs, the upcoming masala ODIs, and Champion League. How convenient that his extreme level of tiredness has occured during the 3 weeks of playing a test series for little money? And I have given examples of cricketers who have played test cricket through full fledged injuries rather than avoiding it for tiredness. Dhoni doesn't come close to that level of committment for the country.

[Ram]

Fact : Dhoni has mentioned the workload and schedule on numerous occasions in the past. Fact : Dhoni chose to skip the SL test series with out being injured. Conclusion : Tests are lower on his priority than the just finished masala ODIs, the upcoming masala ODIs, and Champion League. How convenient that his extreme level of tiredness has occured during the 3 weeks of playing a test series for little money? And I have given examples of cricketers who have played test cricket through full fledged injuries rather than avoiding it for tiredness. Dhoni doesn't come close to that level of committment for the country.

How about this fact? 'Midway through the recent Asia Cup in Pakistan recently, Dhoni spoke about fatigue as a result of back-to-back-matches. On Monday, he welcomed Shah's statement: "The board has done a good thing by saying that if someone needs rest, he can opt out." This is not the first time Dhoni has considered opting out of a tour. In private, he had complained about exhaustion after India's triumph in the CB Series in Australia earlier this year. Despite recovering from a finger injury, he kept the suspense hanging over his availability before the Tests against South Africa, before going on to play the entire series. Since the rigorous IPL campaign with the Chennai Super Kings, Dhoni has played non-stop, leading the side during the Kitply Cup as well as the Asia Cup. http://content-www.cricinfo.com/ci/content/story/360269.html' That blows a big hole into the 'tests is not his priority' theory. He went on to play the ENTRE test series, despite being injured. And sample this for another fact. 'Dhoni had expressed his desire to have rest during the Asia cup in Pakistan but later met the BCCI secretary Niranjan Shan officially and asked for rest. http://cric-news.blogspot.com/2008/07/dhoni-pulls-out-of-test-series-in-sri.html' That again, kills the theory is ODIs is more important to him than tests. He wanted to skip the Asia cup, but the board wouldnt allow him to.

[kumble_rocks]

MM is arguing just for the sake of it now . He has acknowledged that Dhoni's record in test cricket has been nothing great .Rather than establishing himself in the test arena for good , he wants to avoid playing an important test series. Clearly , the facts are out there for anybody to see .Test cricket figures very low in his priority . His stock is very high now . If he can avoid facing Murali /Mendis in the real thing which is test cricket , why not ! Dhoni has taken his position in the team for granted . And to think that he has only one test century in his tally so far . And with the miserable performance by KKD , he can walk in back into the test fold for the Aussie series ! I just hope Parthiv does well in the third test , then he can give Dhoni more rest !:D

[The Outsider]

How about this fact? 'Midway through the recent Asia Cup in Pakistan recently, Dhoni spoke about fatigue as a result of back-to-back-matches. On Monday, he welcomed Shah's statement: "The board has done a good thing by saying that if someone needs rest, he can opt out." This is not the first time Dhoni has considered opting out of a tour. In private, he had complained about exhaustion after India's triumph in the CB Series in Australia earlier this year. Despite recovering from a finger injury, he kept the suspense hanging over his availability before the Tests against South Africa, before going on to play the entire series. Since the rigorous IPL campaign with the Chennai Super Kings, Dhoni has played non-stop, leading the side during the Kitply Cup as well as the Asia Cup. http://content-www.cricinfo.com/ci/content/story/360269.html' That blows a big hole into the 'tests is not his priority' theory. He went on to play the ENTRE test series, despite being injured.

Are you kidding me? The very article that you quoted doesn't support your argument! It says that despite recovering from an injury he kept the suspense hanging which clearly means he was fully fit and despite that did not commit for the test series till late. Moreoever, this is before the IPL mullah!

And sample this for another fact. 'Dhoni had expressed his desire to have rest during the Asia cup in Pakistan but later met the BCCI secretary Niranjan Shan officially and asked for rest. http://cric-news.blogspot.com/2008/07/dhoni-pulls-out-of-test-series-in-sri.html' That again, kills the theory is ODIs is more important to him than tests. He wanted to skip the Asia cup, but the board wouldnt allow him to.

Yeah, and I supposed to believe that if Dhoni had indeed been firm he could not have prioritized it the other way round? Bottom line is that as ODI and T20 skipper he has seen the financial windfall performances there can have compared to say Kumble and Dravid who perform in tests and is exploiting that fact.

[SachDan]

:dance: Jab hum log (Dhoni bashers for some) bol rahe tha koi sun nahin rahaa tha!!

[The Outsider]

It'd be foolish and certainly not being "committed" to play whilst carrying a niggle. Munaf must be your favourite player then. At best, it betrays insecurity.

Yeah, how terribly insecure the likes of Marshall, Tendulkar, Imran, Kumble, Atherton etc. etc. must have been!

I'd not buy the argument that Tests are a low priority item on Dhoni's list. Rather, it's a case of him being more attentive to his ODI team because of the extra responsibility he shoulders.

Which is just saying tests are lower on priority than ODIs for him. Your statement above is saying "more attentive to ODIs" and in the same paragraph you are denying tests are lower on the priority list.

Lastly, whats all that about Dhoni's commitment to the country? Does he not represent his country when he leads the ODI side?

And also withdraws from test series so he can be part of financially lucrative ODIs and T20s instead.

[Brainfade]

What's missing in this discussion is the question: "What is the stated purpose/scope of the award?" If it is a "lifetime" achievement award, then Kumble, Dravid etc. have a stronger claim than does Dhoni. If it is a "2007-08" achievement award, then Dhoni stakes the strongest claim. My guess is that there really is no stated purpose. It is another award created to honor a deceased PM, and is awarded whimsically.

[Brainfade]

Which is just saying tests are lower on priority than ODIs for him. Your statement above is saying "more attentive to ODIs" and in the same paragraph you are denying tests are lower on the priority list. And also withdraws from test series so he can be part of financially lucrative ODIs and T20s instead.

Shwetabh, you seem to ignore the fact that Dhoni is the captain of the ODI/T20 team. He cannot shirk that responsibility, even if he wants to do so.

[Tapioca]

"What is the stated purpose/scope of the award?" If it is a "lifetime" achievement award, then Kumble, Dravid etc. have a stronger claim than does Dhoni. If it is a "2007-08" achievement award, then Dhoni stakes the strongest claim.

This has all been said in the previous pages. But it is still fun to slate Dhoni even if we know that Dravid or Kumble do not deserve it for 2007/8 :D

My guess is that there really is no stated purpose. It is another award created to honor a deceased PM, and is awarded whimsically.

There is another award called Dhyan Chand for lifetime contribution which has been around for four or five years. There is no restriction on the number of people who can win it in a year, there can be even be multiple people from the same sport. No cricketer has won it so far. No idea why. This time BCCI has recommended Chandu Borde even though there are more eligible senior cricketers. It could be that the other more deserving cricketers (Pataudi, SMG, Bedi etc) are well-off but Borde needs financial support. Or it could be because BCCI does not want to honour others for other reasons.

[Ram]

Are you kidding me? The very article that you quoted doesn't support your argument! It says that despite recovering from an injury he kept the suspense hanging which clearly means he was fully fit and despite that did not commit for the test series till late. Moreoever' date=' this is before the IPL mullah![/quote'] The article doesnt say he was fully recovered. Besides, we could see how badly damaged his body was, at the end of the series. If he had wanted, he could have skipped the Saffie series itself.

[beetle]

>>>>Never said T.V popularity, or the ads he gets should be criterion for giving the award. In fact, even earlier in the thread I have clearly indicated how its a shame Dhoni is getting the award ahead of Dravid or Kumble. I just responding to your post when you seemed to indicate Dhoni was less popular than Dravid or Kumble. It seems like you meant just that! Seriously ,you have lost it ! And it's sad because I had a lot of respect for your opinions at one time.....

[Ram]

>>>>Never said T.V popularity, or the ads he gets should be criterion for giving the award. In fact, even earlier in the thread I have clearly indicated how its a shame Dhoni is getting the award ahead of Dravid or Kumble. I just responding to your post when you seemed to indicate Dhoni was less popular than Dravid or Kumble. It seems like you meant just that! Seriously ,you have lost it ! And it's sad because I had a lot of respect for your opinions at one time.....

Please feel free to read this earlier post of mine.

This really is a shame, giving this award to Dhoni ahead of RD or Kumble. If anyone deserve this award, its those two.

[King Tendulkar]

MM give me a direct answer. Dont answer with spin or answer by giving me a question! Given a choice of playing for India in Odis/T20 and captainig the team or playing for India in tests, what would Dhoni choose?

[Feed]

Dhoni is deserving recipient of Khel Ratna: Milkha Singh The chairman of the Arjuna Award selection committee says the ODI captain is a deserving recipient of the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award. More... Dhoni is deserving recipient of Khel Ratna: Milkha Singh Press Trust Of India New Delhi, August 06, 2008 First Published: 14:37 IST(6/8/2008) Last Updated: 14:51 IST(6/8/2008) Hailing Mahendra Singh Dhoni as the "backbone of Indian cricket", chairman of the Arjuna Award selection committee Milkha Singh said the ODI and Twenty20 captain is a deserving recipient of the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award. Dhoni was on Monday conferred with the award, making him only the second cricketer after Sachin Tendulkar to be bestowed the country's highest sporting honour. "From my side I tried my best and gave the award to whoever deserved. Four or five candidates were in contention for the award but Dhoni was the best among the lot. The whole country wanted Dhoni to get the award," Milkha Singh said on Tuesday night on the sidelines of a book release function. The 'Flying Sikh' also said the decision to confer the award to Dhoni was taken unanimously by the selection committee. "He has done tremendously well after coming to the national team. He is the backbone of Indian cricket. The decision to give Dhoni the award has been taken with full support of all members in the selection committee," he stated. Milkha Singh also brushed aside reports that Indian ODI skipper's application was received late by the Sports Ministry. "The Sports Ministry has told me that they have received Dhoni's application before the deadline of July 27, but due to some internal hazards they were not able to trace the application. However, they later extended the deadline by a day or two," he said. Although he and his colleagues in the selection committee decided to confer the Khel Ratna Award to Dhoni, Milkha Singh was quick to point out that cricket does not appeal him like Olympic sports. "The whole country is after cricket but I am little bit against the game because I think the popularity of cricket has declined the standard of Olympic sports in the country." He also revealed that after being appointed as the chairman of the selection committee, he was under constant pressure from all quarters of the sporting fraternity. "I was under a lot of pressure. I used to get 200 to 300 calls every day saying that please give the Arjuna Award to him or her," Milkha Singh said.

[Ram]

MM give me a direct answer. Dont answer with spin or answer by giving me a question! Given a choice of playing for India in Odis/T20 and captainig the team or playing for India in tests, what would Dhoni choose?

How am I supposed to know the answer for that? I am not a close confidante of Dhoni. Look, all I am saying is, dont just jump to sweeping conclusions based on just one event. Lets wait and watch a few more times. If he continues to discard test cricket, then I wont waste a minute in changing my stand as well.

[King]

Isn't it ironical Dhoni is being bestowed national honour but he's opted out of national duty?