Gary Kirsten warns Indian selectors about dropping MS Dhoni

Gary Kirsten, the former Indian coach at one point of his career is borderline worshiped in this country. Of course, he did set the tone for the Indian side for the next few years after he moved on, but, the fact of the matter remains that he did indeed give the Indians one World Cup, the one in 2011.

However, when asked about Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the former South African opener seemed to be rather tired of giving the similar reply he has given in the many years since he has moved on. Kirsten worked with MS Dhoni in the front-lines of Indian cricket in the past and also warned the selection committee of replacing him.

“You are not going to get an answer out of me. You replace M S Dhoni at your peril, because the one experience I have had is that all great leaders have great performances till the end of their careers,” said Kirsten at a promotional event.

Kirsten sternly believes that Dhoni still has a lot to offer when it comes to planning for the 2019 edition of the World Cup.

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“So, if you (are) willing to let M S Dhoni go when there might potentially be a great World Cup performance left in him if he goes to the (2019) World Cup, which I am not sure if he is (taking part in) or not, you take the risk of doing that,” the former South Africa cricketer said emphatically.

“There is no debating in my opinion that he is up there with India’s greatest captains and certainly has produced the trophies for India in his time,” added Kirsten who was India’s coach when Dhoni and company lifted the World Cup in 2011.

“You just have to look at his ODI batting record as well, As a finisher, it’s unsurpassed in the world in terms of the position he bats in. So, if anyone is doubting his ability, I think they would be making a great mistake.

“He is a great player and all great players would continue to produce fantastic performances through their career. It’s exciting to see him doing well and having success with the Indian team. I enjoyed working with him and it was a great experience for me,” he added.

He also went on to prove that evidence stating that Dhoni had an average over 50. “There comes a time in every player when he is got to consider for himself whether he should be in the team or it’s time to move. We will leave the decision up to him,” he said.

“That discussion is going on for eight years. He does (have) an ODI batting average of over 50. He can bat in lot of different positions.

“When I was with the Indian team, I encouraged rotational batting order, where we batted according to the situation rather than this is your batting position today. M S was brilliant at that, he didn’t mind where he batted.”

“I always liked him to come in when we needed 100 runs to win because there was no one better (than him) in the world (who) could have won a game from that position, speaking from my experience. But he often liked to get up little bit earlier, so that he can have more time at the wicket and help himself to a hundred. M S Dhoni could pretty much bat anywhere in the batting order,” Kirsten explained further.

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