MS Dhoni is hugely important for India's chances at the World Cup: Nasser Hussain

A number of players will be appearing in the cricket World Cup one last time in England and Wales this year but the eyes are more on MS Dhoni, the only former World Cup-winning captain to play in the tournament. There were doubts over the ageing wicketkeeper-batsman playing in the tournament this year because of an ordinary batting form but Dhoni came out strong to beat all odds.

He has been picked in the Indian squad for his fourth and final WC and also a vital member who can help captain Virat Kohli to win the trophy. Dhoni made a terrific comeback to form with the bat in the three-game series against Australia Down Under in January, hitting three fifties on the trot and ended up as the man of the series. Former England captain Nasser Hussain felt Dhoni’s hitting ability might be not the same as it was but he still has huge importance as far as India’s hopes of winning the trophy is concerned.

“MS Dhoni is hugely important for India‘s chances at the World Cup. There are certain cricketers around the world who rise to the occasion and are big-match players and Dhoni is one of them. The bigger the occasion and the more the pressure he is under, Dhoni is the one who seems to soak up that pressure and pace the innings brilliantly. Some have argued that his skills in 50-over cricket have been on the wane slightly but I’m not so sure about that,” Nasser, who had led England in the 2003 WC, was quoted as saying by firstpost.com in an interview.

Nasser Hussain praised Dhoni’s game-reading capacity

Nasser also lauded Dhoni as one who knows how to handle pressure situations and read the game and people with such acumen are of a great asset on a big stage like the World Cup.

While India have picked Dhoni as their main wicketkeeper, Dinesh Karthik will be the second one after he pipped Rishabh Pant to earn a berth.

Hussain was also hopeful about India’s seam-bowling attack at the tournament that comprises the likes of Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami and Bhuvneshwar Kumar.

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