Personally, the foremost blemish that I’d say Dhoni has committed, and doesn’t seem to have learned is that he hasn’t been prepared to make tough decisions. I am not talking about Dhoni taking gambles in match situations, and the repercussions that come out of those decisions, but how much is he prepared to juggle with the squad at hand? Yes, there are going to be certain players, who have a decrease/increase in their performance level from one series to another, but a string of failures needs to be addressed, and I am not so sure whether that is happening with our captain marvel.
With that being said, it’s also up to a player to invite faith from the captain through his performances. I do not want to single out the players, who have failed to translate their imperious form back home to overseas conditions, but if the nucleus of your squad isn’t going to turn up for the occasion, who is to be blamed?
Also, I can understand a captain’s willingness to stand up for the team, and bat for the below-par performances that have lead to defeat, but is he hurt by the progress shown by his side? How much is he affected by the incapability of his side to churn out good results? Series scorelines such as 0-2, 0-1, 0-4 in the last couple of months are results of some serious deficiencies that a team is going through. And for me, that’s where Dhoni’s serene nature is compounding problems and way below-par results in overseas conditions.
There has to come a time when the captain turns into a ring-master, and cracks the whip on even the most established personnels at his disposal. Because, if the aforementioned aspects are addressed in the huddle, team-meetings, and during one on one conversations with players in the side, I can’t see a reason why such a talented bunch of players are proving to be futile with their ability to produce results.
I wish that the headline remains a question in itself, and a verdict need not be made. There’s way too much of ambiguity attached to the headline and the concept in itself, and personally, we need to be giving this rising Indian brigade at least another 6 months before we make a complete appraisal of who is to be blamed, and who is not to.
There’s only so much a captain can do!
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