Dhoni-Sehwag rift forced BCCI intervention: sources

[Lord]

New Delhi: The alleged, and apparent, rift between the Indian captain MS Dhoni and Virender Sehwag has hogged the media limelight for quite some time now. The seeds of unrest were sown during the final of the inaugural ICC World Twenty20 final in 2007 when Dhoni dropped Sehwag and pitch-forked an uncapped Yusuf Pathan in the team. Since then reams have been written about the two senior cricketers being at loggerheads with each other. Recently, Dhoni dropped Sehwag from India's XI for the World Twenty20 Super Eights match against Australia which sparked off a kerfuffle. Dhoni opted to open the innings with Irfan Pathan as India were pulverized by nine wickets and eventually couldn't make it to the semi-finals In a sensational revelation, a BCCI official, on the condition of anonymity, told Cricketnext that when Dhoni conveyed his decision to Sehwag to drop him for the crucial game against Australia, the opener was irate. A blazing tiff ensued and Dhoni ended up accusing Sehwag of deliberately under-performing to undermine his captaincy.:omg: Things came to a head and top brass of the BCCI had to intervene and placate the simmering row. "When Sehwag angrily questioned Dhoni's decision to leave him out for the crucial match, Dhoni shot back and questioned Sehwag's loyalty towards the team," said the official. "Dhoni told Sehwag that he was in superb touch during IPL 5 while he was captaining Delhi Daredevils but had done little of note in last two years in all formats during his captaincy. Sparks flew thick and fast and high authorities of the BCCI had to intervene and diffuse the tension He continued: "Dhoni feels that Sehwag doesn't perform to his full potential and is very reckless in his approach. He probably thinks that Sehwag is forging a faction in the team to turn a few key players against him and usurp the captaincy. Sehwag's ambition to lead the Indian side is well known. Sehwag, on the other hand, feels he is hard done by Dhoni on several occasions. He thinks Dhoni lends patronage to lesser-talented cricketers like Ravindra Jadeja, RP Singh and Piyush Chawla but never misses a chance to queer his pitch." The official also said that Dhoni's walking away with a major part of the applause for IndiaÃÔ triumph in the 2011 World Cup did not go down well with Sehwag. "He [sehwag] strongly believed it was a team effort. Since then, things went from bad to worse and he made several statements claiming that India won the trophy because of strong team and not due to Dhoni's outstanding leadership." Meanwhile, a source close to Sehwag dismissed talk of him under-performing. "Sehwag has been playing for India for 12 years and established himself as one of the greatest batsmen India have ever produced. It is deplorable to question Sehwag's commitment to the team," he told Cricketnext. "Sehwag was hurt when he was axed from the team for big matches on a number of times like the final of the 2007 World Twenty20 and the CB Series final against Australia in 2008 when Robin Uthappa replaced him, but he doesn't harbour animosity against Dhoni. "He has performed brilliantly under Dhoni's captaincy between 2008 and 2010 so how could he possibly undermine Dhoni? Sehwag is the kind of batsman who thrives on self-belief and confidence. A captain must show faith in his abilities but this has not been the case of late. He felt unwanted in the team at times and his confidence eroded. Team management must not fiddle with his confidence. Sehwag is a man of steely temperament and he'll bounce back very soon." Madan Lal, the former Indian allrounder and coach, has followed Sehwag's career very closely and believes that Sehwag cannot afford to under-perform as no player can take his place in the team for granted. "Sehwag is a special talent but even he can't afford to take his place for granted in the team. No player can think of under-performing as your place would be under scanner. Sehwag was dropped on a few occasions because his form was patchy," he said. "He's a mature and sensible cricketer. I've known him for years and he will never indulge in such petty shenanigans. As for a rift between Dhoni and Sehwag, I think the media is blowing it out of proportion. There might be a difference of opinion, which is natural in a team sport, but I don't see anything more to it. Ultimately, the collective objective of the team is to perform well on the field for their country and all other issues are peripheral."

http://cricketnext.in.com/live/news/dhonisehwag-rift-forced-bcci-intervention-sources/68398-13.html :popcorn: as ever,we dont know who this source is.some mirch masala too by media but things definitely dont seem well in dressing room n its showing effects.wtf is Fletcher doing?:wall:

[Trichromatic]

Oh no, not again a cricketnext's source. Site is deliberately making up stuff for long time. They always seems to produce some kind of all-knowing unknown source who gives them information which no one else has. Amla's story Three captains story and now this.

[Crookbond]

It's like CricketNext picks a player (in this case Sehwag) and weaves stories around it - with credible anonymous sources of course - to back that player. Once Sehwag starts not performing they will be the first ones to burn his pants.

[Lord]

It's like CricketNext picks a player (in this case Sehwag) and weaves stories around it - with credible anonymous sources of course - to back that player. Once Sehwag starts not performing they will be the first ones to burn his pants.

hes performing?:haha:

[BeautifulGame]

Meanwhile, a source close to Sehwag dismissed talk of him under-performing. "Sehwag has been playing for India for 12 years and established himself as one of the greatest batsmen India have ever produced. It is deplorable to question Sehwag's commitment to the team," he told Cricketnext. "Sehwag was hurt when he was axed from the team for big matches on a number of times like the final of the 2007 World Twenty20 and the CB Series final against Australia in 2008 when Robin Uthappa replaced him, but he doesn't harbour animosity against Dhoni.

Thats some scoop :giggle:

[Crookbond]

hes performing?:haha:

As a captain.

[Lord]

As a captain.

well imo Dhoni-Sehwag rift is not new or media built it was there in 2009 too wen Dhoni got entire team in PC.but under Kirsten it was in check maybe due to his efforts,but Fletcher doesnt seem to be doing anything n it has gone out of hand

[Trichromatic]

well imo Dhoni-Sehwag rift is not new or media built it was there in 2009 too wen Dhoni got entire team in PC.but under Kirsten it was in check maybe due to his efforts' date=but Fletcher doesnt seem to be doing anything n it has gone out of hand

Doesn't mean anyone publishes anything by giving reference of 'sources' and it becomes true.

[Crookbond]

well imo Dhoni-Sehwag rift is not new or media built it was there in 2009 too wen Dhoni got entire team in PC.but under Kirsten it was in check maybe due to his efforts' date=but Fletcher doesnt seem to be doing anything n it has gone out of hand

See, once you use a powerful word like "rift" the burden is on the person who says it to provide concrete and damning evidence of the fact. If not, it's mere speculation. Secondly, you do not know what Fletcher is doing and what he's not so it's best not to comment on that aspect In my books, there's a difference in opinion and it happens in every dressing room. In our case, it coincides with a bad time in performance and hence, blown out of proportion.

[Lord]

See, once you use a powerful word like "rift" the burden is on the person who says it to provide concrete and damning evidence of the fact. If not, it's mere speculation. Secondly, you do not know what Fletcher is doing and what he's not so it's best not to comment on that aspect In my books, there's a difference in opinion and it happens in every dressing room. In our case, it coincides with a bad time in performance and hence, blown out of proportion.

well I just gave my opinion,not saying as a fact,nor can I prove it,dunno why u r overreacting as for Fletcher,based on results under him n the general way the team has played,its not unfair to infer hes doing nothing good,if anything

[Crookbond]

well I just gave my opinion,not saying as a fact,nor can I prove it,dunno why u r overreacting as for Fletcher,based on results under him n the general way the team has played,its not unfair to infer hes doing nothing good,if anything

Dude - I am not over reacting; just giving my opinion over your opinion. :cantstop: Surely blame Fletcher for the results and that's fair but saying that he is not doing anything to bring harmony in the group will be pretty difficult to prove - wouldn't it?

[Lord]

Dude - I am not over reacting; just giving my opinion over your opinion. :cantstop: Surely blame Fletcher for the results and that's fair but saying that he is not doing anything to bring harmony in the group will be pretty difficult to prove - wouldn't it?

yeah it would,but I'm not courtroom or saying it in media.just my opinion.blaming fletcher for the results includes saying he isnt doing anything to improve team atmosphere,thats a part of his job too.

[Texy]

I wonder if Raina's nephew is the source :hmmm:

[Tendulkar_Bhai]

This is old news, since 2007 it has been known that there is a "rift" between the two, i remember speaking to some Indian journalists in WI during the t20 WC who talked of the 2 not getting on. But its no big deal and if true I would support Dhoni, Sehwag has been rubbish for yrs and seems disruptive, DHoni is much more valuable to team India

[bablankalhan]

Cricket Next is backed by CNN IBN and Rajdeep Sardesai so u never know..atleast half of this news can be true !

[JourneyMan]

If this is true, Sehwag should have replied to Dhoni that he seems to be in great touch with CSK and then suddenly forgets how to hit the ball when playing in blue colours.