Kirmani bats for under-fire Dhoni, downplays string of losses

[Crookbond]

India lost ODI and Test series in England india lost test series and got eliminated from final in CB series in Australia India lost ODI and Test series in SA India lost ODI and Test series in NZ India will lose Test series for sure in England ( Because Dhoni already knew it) INdia will lose Test series in Australia (That also Dhoni knows)

That highlighted is a bit OTT

I don't know or care if Dhoni is right or wrong here. His Test captaincy, IMO, is not that great. May be it is for some. Let us keep that all aside. Any captain of any nation 'has' to step down after losing all the away series in the last 3 years. Not only the series but also not being able to clinch a single victory. His form hasn't been bad enough to be dropped yet, but should be stripped of the Test captaincy, ASAP. It should be the right time to step down and groom a young captain in Test.

That is essentially the point. How far can you go with a captain? You gave him 3 years and things are the same with the sides changed.

[skindia]

U cant say improvement,aus and eng not no 8 sides

[vvvslaxman]

That highlighted is a bit OTT That is essentially the point. How far can you go with a captain? You gave him 3 years and things are the same with the sides changed.

India did not make it to final among three . One of which was Srilanka. That was to emphasize how India did not provide any result at any level. May be a T20 win here and there. Not sure.

[Crookbond]

India did not make it to final among three . One of which was Srilanka. That was to emphasize how India did not provide any result at any level. May be a T20 win here and there. Not sure.

So? Not the first instance, India didn't make it to the final of a tri-series and won't be the last instance either. The more bigger issues were that India weren't able to win a single game in the last ODI/Test series in SA and NZ.

[GautiMaan]

Theres visible improvements since the England and Aussie tours.We hardly made any high scores in those series and now we have made a few in the 400+ area. So definitely an improvement in the batting dept then after the seniors were hauled out. The bowling is now what we need to focus on . It is clear that the bowlers are not consistent and lack penetration.In such a case,we need to try different combinations and hope that one of them clicks.Yadav will surely make way for Zak . Getting there slowly.

Why is it so hard to imagine that we might improve more if Dhoni is also hauled out,his batting has been below par,keeping was never great,lets not talk again abt captaincy.

[Crookbond]

India did not make it to final among three . One of which was Srilanka. That was to emphasize how India did not provide any result at any level. May be a T20 win here and there. Not sure.

So? Not the first instance, India didn't make it to the final of a tri-series and won't be the last instance either. The more bigger issues were that India weren't able to win a single game in the last ODI/Test series in SA and NZ.

[vvvslaxman]

So? Not the first instance' date=' India didn't make it to the final of a tri-series and won't be the last instance either. The more bigger issues were that India weren't able to win a single game in the last ODI/Test series in SA and NZ.[/quote'] Yea we sucked less there. So? It is still a failure. Just beacuse we have lost there before doesn't mean he can lose . We have lost in England as well, SA as well, NZ as well. Bottomline is in all the 4 bilateral overseas series India failed at all levels.

[Marut]

Gavaskar also supports MSD: On the day when Brendon McCullum entered record books with a maiden triple ton and ensured a draw at Wellington to win the two-match series 1-0 over India, former India skipper and NDTV expert Sunil Gavaskar refused to put the entire blame on Indian captain MS Dhoni and felt that he had a lot more to offer as India's Test captain. Answering questions on whether it was time to ease the workload on Dhoni and find a new captain in Tests, Gavaskar said," I don't think so. Not at the moment. I think Dhoni has still got plenty to offer. A captain can do very little if you don't have a bowling attack. Generally a captain is only as good as his team," Gavaskar told NDTV in an exclusive chat from Wellington. http://sports.ndtv.com/new-zealand-vs-india-2014/news/221048-mahendra-singh-dhoni-still-has-more-to-offer-as-indias-test-captain-sunil-gavaskar-tells-ndtv

The two stmts are contradictory. If the captain is only as good as the team, what is it that Dhoni has in plenty to offer? He is a poor overseas test batsman and a mediocre wicket keeper, and if as a captain he can't do anything that the team cannot do, why is he still there in the team, and much less as a captain?

[CG]

NAGPUR: Calls for sacking Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni grew louder on Monday with batting legend Sunil Gavaskar leading the chorus after India's dismal performance during the last 18 months capped by a series capitulation to England on Monday. Apart from Gavaskar, several former cricketers including former chairman of selectors Kris Srikkanth, Atul Wassan and Abbas Ali Baig wanted a change in Test captaincy with Virat Kohli's name being suggested as a possible replacement Gavaskar said it was time the selectors looked to the future as Dhoni seemed out of sorts in this series. "Till the fourth day of this Test I said there is no alternative to Mahendra Singh Dhoni, but now that Virat (Kohli) has come up with a 100 under trying circumstances I think he has discovered a good part about himself. I think he is ready to take on the mantle," the former India skipper said. "I think this is something to be looked at in a positive manner because that's where the future is," Gavaskar said.

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-12-17/top-stories/35869454_1_ms-dhoni-captaincy-record-india-skipper Gavaskar after indias home series loss.

[Marut]

I don't know or care if Dhoni is right or wrong here. His Test captaincy, IMO, is not that great. May be it is for some. Let us keep that all aside. Any captain of any nation 'has' to step down after losing all the away series in the last 3 years. Not only the series but also not being able to clinch a single victory. His form hasn't been bad enough to be dropped yet, but should be stripped of the Test captaincy, ASAP. It should be the right time to step down and groom a young captain in Test.

That is the whole deal. Dhoni, like the politicians of our country, is too stubborn to vacate his seat even after failed government. As a captain, he makes a lot of money and endorsements, and all that would leave him. For filling up his treasure boxes, he is holding the country as hostage now.

[asterix]

Money from Rhiti credited to Kiri's offshore bank account.,, :nice:

[zep1706]

Dhoni is never going to be a successful test match captain overseas. He just doesn't have it. Anyone who doesn't get money and favors from BCCI and has followed cricket for a while can see his bizarre decisions. Those worked for a period of 2-3 years when we were mostly playing at home, then from 2011 onward his captaincy has been exposed big time. If you don't make any change and play the same proven failures and you are bound to lose. He went with 3 bowlers in a must win game. Can it get more idiotic than that?

[prasadiyer]

Kirmani is full of irritating platitudes. What world is he living in? You can see the blood-letting going on in England, for example. That's just for one Ashes failure. We on the other hand have been losing left and right for years now (overseas I am talking about), but still have the Kirmanis and the Gavaskars talking as if a mostly successful team has had a small setback. By England standards the whole team needs to go. So what if the replacements are equally bad; if we have to fail, then at least let the people responsible for the failures feel the pinch. Who knows, maybe the fear of being the next to go might spur the new players to perform better than their abilities! I am positive, the whole team needs to be replaced.