MS Dhoni Promotes Himself As He Seeks To End Batting Woes And It Looks Like The Ideal Solution!

From the moment MS Dhoni walked out Sunday night at the fall of India's second wicket, there was a sense of purpose. Let's rivisit the scenaio: India are 41/2 in nine overs in pursuit of 286. Rohit Sharma has just departed, while Virat Kohli was dropped minutes earlier on 6. To come after Dhoni are Kedar Jadhav and Manish Pandey, two relatively inexperienced players. If New Zealand could see the back of Dhoni, there is an opening.

AP

Sixth ball of his innings, Dhoni charges Tim Southee for a four down the wicket. Brute power. Around 20 balls later, the calmness is restored and Dhoni has carefully moved to 13. There is nothing extravagant besides that four. He has taken his time and looked in control of the short ball. During his innings of 80, Dhoni has gone past 9000 ODI runs and surpassed Sachin Tendulkar for the most sixes by and Indian in ODIs.

Fans love it, for he is only next to Tendulkar in terms of popularity. They love to have an opinion of him; most recent being that of his botched finishes. But tonight is different. Dhoni looks a lot more composed. He is finally connecting the big shots and accumulating runs. Time and again, he hasn't hidden his desire to bat up the order, and expectedly so. The evolution of bowlers over the years has outdone his judgment and it's taking the shine off the gigantic contributions he's made to Indian cricket.

On Sunday, Dhoni's pragmatic approach stood out. He realised how it was important for him to partner Kohli from the other end. The wounds of the Kotla defeat still afresh, Dhoni took on that mantle perfectly. Not once did he bog down. Dhoni took on the short ball from Matt Henry and Tim Southee early in the innings and didn't allow Mitchell Santner to settle in by dispatching him over the fence in the second over.

BCCI

He scored 30 off his first 33 balls, fairly authoritative than his recent outings; anyday better than the 65-ball 30s he's been scoring lately. It was as well as he had batted. Positive, taking on the bowling without the pressure of playing catch-up. And it's something he needs to do more regularly as India continue their search of middle-order alternatives.

With the unpredictability surrounding Suresh Raina's longevity in the 50-over format, India will be better equipped playing their two best batsmen - Dhoni and Kohli and No. 3 and No. 4. Even though Sunday was only their second 100-plus stand, there have been a few memorable partnerships between the two that have won India matches in the last one year.

Dhoni batting up the order will universally allow him to prepare a blue-print for the innings than India scratching and crawling their way past the line. Furthermore, batting with Kohli will give both batsmen assurance and the freedom to bat in a carefree manner. Then there's the running between the wickets as well.

Dhoni has repeatedly said that how for him, the process is more important than results. How building a team for the 2019 World Cup is his priority. He abided by it for the 2011 and 2015 World Cup and the results are right out there. The thing with great players is that they need to realise what stage they're at. At 35, the reflexes are slow. He isn't even playing as much as he used to that results in lack of regular match practice.

He is leading a team that has Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, Kohli and a waiting KL Rahul, further hampering his chances of batting higher. Plus, the constant shuffling of India's middle order owing to experiments and rests makes it all the more complicated.

AP

"Batting at No. 4 is more my own need than that of the team. It was important for me to express myself, something I wanted to do for a long time. If it doesn't happen, tendency is you can't fluently rotate strike and that was what was happening with my batting," Dhoni said.

Exactly why it's time for Dhoni, in the last phase of his glorified career, to make a higher slot his own and let a younger player take over the role of a finisher. In the current set-up, Hardik Pandya seems to be a serious contender. So does Jadhav and Pandey. But with the constant shuffling, it's easier said than done.

There are plenty of combinations involved: Will India persist with Rahane once Shikhar Dhawan returns or Rahul takes that place? If they do, where does Rahane fit? What happens to Jadhav/Pandey if and when Raina is drafted back?

Regardless, the next few months will be detrimental to Dhoni's future and his credibility as a batsman. For far too long, his approach has been scrutinised - a series that began by Dhoni refusing Ambati Rayudu a single in 2014 at the Oval but failing to land the knockout punch himself. If by batting higher, he can relieve and reassure the odd Indian cricket fan, then be it.