'Fabulous decision' - Suresh Raina reacts to MS Dhoni's appointment as a mentor for T20 WC

A lot of fans were pleasantly surprised to see MS Dhoni being added to the Indian team as a mentor for the T20 World Cup 2021. The news came as a total surprise and no one had even managed to guess something like this. MS Dhoni had played for India in all the six T20 World Cups so far and now would be donning a new role for this year’s edition in the United Arab Emirates and Oman.

Another surprising news was the decision to pick Ravichandran Ashwin in the squad. The veteran spinner has been in peak form in the last few years but was not a part of any of India’s white-ball squads since 2017. His return as well as Dhoni’s appointment has sparked a reaction from their mate, Suresh Raina.

Raina, who announced his retirement from international cricket last year along with MS Dhoni, posted a tweet after the squad was announced. He said that the team looks very balanced and that he is happy to see Ashwin back in the squad. Raina also called the decision of the BCCI to have Dhoni as fabulous.

“All the very best to #TeamIndia on the upcoming T20 World Cup, the selected squad looks very balanced. Good to have @ashwinravi99 back in the team, and a fabulous decision by @bcci to have the man himself @msdhoni bhai as the mentor,” tweeted Raina.

All the very best to #TeamIndia on the upcoming T20 World Cup, the selected squad looks very balanced. Good to have @ashwinravi99 back in the team, and a fabulous decision by @bcci to have the man himself @msdhoni bhai as the mentor.

— Suresh Raina🇮🇳 (@ImRaina) September 8, 2021

Ashwin’s selection might have been because of Washington Sundar’s injury

The news of Dhoni’s comeback to the Indian dressing room as a mentor was broken by BCCI secretary Jay Shah. He made it a point to clear out that Dhoni’s appointment is a one-off. Dhoni is not likely to continue his role after the summit event. Dhoni is already in the UAE preparing for the second leg of IPL 2021 and would be staying back to help team India to give direction. 

The decision of backing Ashwin looks a bit surprising but some have speculated that it is a decision made keeping in mind the conditions and availability. India doesn’t have a right-arm off-spinner other than Ashwin and Washington Sundar, who would have been otherwise selected but had to be left out due to an injury.