We need to give more time to Sehwag: Dhoni

[game_changerr]

CHENNAI: Virender Sehwag's patchy form continued but skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni still believes that the senior opener should be given more time to get back to form as he is a match-winner. Asked about the performance of Sehwag, who played in the Test wearing spectacles, Dhoni said, "I think we just need to give him more time. Well, that's how he bats. About Viru pa, I've said this plenty of times before, when he scores runs, he looks a fantastic player and when he doesn't, you can question the shot he played or the way he played." "He's someone who's always played with that sort of flair. At times, we get very critical about him. We all know he is someone who can change the course of the game, he's an attacking player. So let's go forward with that kind of an attitude," he said. Sehwag had scores of 2 and 19 in the first Test which concluded here today. He said Sehwag was unfortunate to get out in the first innings. "This wicket, there was not much pace. First innings, he was unfortunate because he middle the ball, yet it came back and fell on the stump. In the second innings, there was not much pace for him to play freely," Dhoni said at the press-conference after India beat Australia by eight wickets in the first Test here. The Indian captain also made it clear that Murali Vijay, who scored 10 and six in the two innings, will continue at the opening slot. "If you look at just the statistics of opening batsmen you may say that he (Vijay) is not good enough. But at the same time you need to give them a fair amount of time. Let's hope for the best. Vijay has played this game, let's continue with him and give him some time and the comfort of saying that he's wanted over here," Dhoni said. Asked if the team could go for four spinners in the Tests to follow, Dhoni said,"Four or five can be an option but you have to be sure that the wicket will turn. On the very first day, most of us assumed that it (Chepauk) would be a turning track, it would have plenty for the spinners. But we saw it was a decent wicket. "Yes, there was a bit of turn on offer for the spinners, but overall it was quite a good wicket. That's why you want to be prepared for a situation like you think something may happen, but it actually goes the other way around. "Also, Bhuvneshwar Kumar is someone who can add a bit. We all know the importance of batting deep because it really frustrates the opposition bowling. I think we went with the right combination. "Three spinners itself is a lot. If you have an extra fourth spinner, then it becomes very difficult to answer why the fourth one bowled only a small number of overs. You can't make three or four spinners bowl the exactly same number of overs. You don't see the number of overs bowled by them and then make a bowling change. Who looks effective, according to that you make the change." On Ojha being left out for the first Test here, Dhoni said, "There are lots of questions. It's not always good to be predictable. As I said, you look at the batting line-up, there were lots of left-handers in their side. "As I said, it's considered that the away-going spinners is quite difficult to face consistently. Also, the fact that the away going spinner, can keep it slightly tight so that you don't leak too many runs. So we had the perfect combination of two off-spinners and one left-armer." src-toi

[Lord]

so its confirmed.no changes,Ojha an Rahane will stay out:facepalm:

[skindia]

sad that vijay with highest 42 in ranji will play another game while players like rahane and dhawan will be on bench..same happened with manoj tiwari in odi for playing rohit in 11..

[skindia]

arrogance back with 1 200+ innings even after failure in previous 10-12 test matches..

[SLICKR392]

What a schmuck.

[The Realist]

Retarded logic. Just because you win a game does not mean all is well. Openers are a liability and the bowling is lightweight. Yet all is good in Dhoni's hood :facepalm:

[Vivek.S.123]

We will never win away tests with players like Vijay, Sehwag, Jadeja, Harbhajan, Ishant and Dhoni himself :((

[Crookbond]

Rhiti Sports or CSK mate? Conspiracy theorists ... attack!

[Sidhoni]

So backing a senior player who is out of form is wrong? Wonder if the same guys will be happy if he stops backing all out of form seniors, including Sachin.

[tweaker]

How much more chances will Sehwag get.We should try new openers

[Marut]

Sehwag selection on Indian pitches looks ok to me. He can be a winner here, form or not.

[Dumbbells]

Problem wid sehwag is he seems to have lost the reflexes to play pace bowling. He can play 125k to 135k on indian tracks. But he cant play 140k anymore.

[bharat297]

Problem wid sehwag is he seems to have lost the reflexes to play pace bowling. He can play 125k to 135k on indian tracks. But he cant play 140k anymore.

Exactly. It's a common problem with batsmen in their mid-30s, their hand eye coordination deteriorates. However with batsmen with strong techniques e.g. Ponting, Tendulkar, Dravid, Kallis, etc. or strong temperaments e.g. Chanderpaul, Waugh or ideally a combination of both they can push on. Unfortunately Sehwag has worsening hand-eye coordination and no technique or temperament. So its a losing battle.

[Vivek.S.123]

Hopefully the specs bring his form back. We need a in-form Viru in South Africa

[carnish]

Hopefully the specs bring his form back. We need a in-form Viru in South Africa

Dont worry ... Veeru will be back to his firing best soon.

[Vivek.S.123]

Dont worry ... Veeru will be back to his firing best soon.

:pray::pray:

[Muloghonto]

The issue of Sehwag sums up the unbelievable shortsightedness in Indian cricket - both from the fans and establishment. Veeru does not come with the tightest defensive technique- never has and never will. He is a career middle order bat who's been the most spectacular success story in test cricket. Due to his extraordiary talent- hand-eye coordination and clutter-free thinking, he's managed to average 50+ as an opener in tests. At his pomp, he averaged 50+ in Australia and destroyed class pace attacks. For any opener, that is a vaunted accomplishment. For a middle order bat to do so, is mindboggling. Unfortunately, test cricket has never been generous to stylish shot-making openers. Openers such as Gibbs, Slater, Jayasurya, etc- the shotmaking openers- don't do so well in their 30s, which is the period where mostly dour & gritty openers succeed. So IMO, it is completely unrealistic to expect Sehwag, a career middle order bat by trade, thrust into opening and being the most spectacular success story in cricket for filling in a slot he isn't trained for, to do well. However, it would be criminal to take this middle order bat who's no longer good enough to open the batting and discard him. The logical thing for Sehwag would be to shunt him down the order- like West Indies did with Viv Richards when Richards started to get old. Sehwag has all the ability to succeed when the ball has lost its shine and he knows what to expect from the pitch- ideal for #5 or #6 IMO and there is where he should bat for now. Infact, when we go tour South Africa, our plan should be simple- get Gambhir and someone else to take lessons from Akash Chopra on how to blunt the ball, do that job and not expose the #3-#4 bat till the 15th-20th over. The middle order should be Pujara, Tendulkar (or Rahane/Rayudu if Tendy retires after this series), Kohli, Sehwag, Dhoni & Ashwin to round out #3-#8 spots. If we do this, we have a good chance in not losing due to batting collapses.If we don't, Sehwag would be wasted in South Africa and it would be extremely sad to see a middle order bat who's succeeded spectacularly at a job he wasn't suited for being given the shaft and shown the door without giving him a chance to play where he belongs-in the middle order

[Jersey #10]

Ishu out Ojha in. The only change I can think of

[1983-2011]

fu*ck off dhoni

[Lord]

The issue of Sehwag sums up the unbelievable shortsightedness in Indian cricket - both from the fans and establishment. Veeru does not come with the tightest defensive technique- never has and never will. He is a career middle order bat who's been the most spectacular success story in test cricket. Due to his extraordiary talent- hand-eye coordination and clutter-free thinking, he's managed to average 50+ as an opener in tests. At his pomp, he averaged 50+ in Australia and destroyed class pace attacks. For any opener, that is a vaunted accomplishment. For a middle order bat to do so, is mindboggling. Unfortunately, test cricket has never been generous to stylish shot-making openers. Openers such as Gibbs, Slater, Jayasurya, etc- the shotmaking openers- don't do so well in their 30s, which is the period where mostly dour & gritty openers succeed. So IMO, it is completely unrealistic to expect Sehwag, a career middle order bat by trade, thrust into opening and being the most spectacular success story in cricket for filling in a slot he isn't trained for, to do well. However, it would be criminal to take this middle order bat who's no longer good enough to open the batting and discard him. The logical thing for Sehwag would be to shunt him down the order- like West Indies did with Viv Richards when Richards started to get old. Sehwag has all the ability to succeed when the ball has lost its shine and he knows what to expect from the pitch- ideal for #5 or #6 IMO and there is where he should bat for now. Infact, when we go tour South Africa, our plan should be simple- get Gambhir and someone else to take lessons from Akash Chopra on how to blunt the ball, do that job and not expose the #3-#4 bat till the 15th-20th over. The middle order should be Pujara, Tendulkar (or Rahane/Rayudu if Tendy retires after this series), Kohli, Sehwag, Dhoni & Ashwin to round out #3-#8 spots. If we do this, we have a good chance in not losing due to batting collapses.If we don't, Sehwag would be wasted in South Africa and it would be extremely sad to see a middle order bat who's succeeded spectacularly at a job he wasn't suited for being given the shaft and shown the door without giving him a chance to play where he belongs-in the middle order

good post:two_thumbs_up: