Everybody has views and it should be respected, says MS Dhoni on criticism

MS Dhoni reacted to the recent criticism. (Source: PTI)

Mahendra Singh Dhoni on Sunday reacted to all the recent criticism he has been facing and repeated call for his retirement after India’s loss to New Zealand in the second T20I. Dhoni said that everybody is entitled to their own opinion.

The 36-year old was quoted by PTI as saying, “Everybody has views in life and it should be respected. The biggest motivation is being a part of the Indian cricket team. You have seen cricketers who are not god-gifted, but even then, they have gone far. That’s because of the passion. The coaches need to find that out. Everybody doesn’t play for the country.”

Dhoni’s role came under scrutiny once again after India’s loss to New Zealand in the second T20I. India had lost too many wickets while chasing a target of 197 and Dhoni struggled to get going, resulting in the run rate climbing.

“I have always believed that process is more important than results. I never thought about results, I always thought what is the right thing to do at that point of time whether it’s 10 runs needed, 14 runs needed or 5 runs needed,” said Dhoni, who was in Dubai to launch his global cricket academy MS Dhoni Cricket Academy in association with Dubai-based Pacific Ventures.

Talking about his trademark helicopter shot, Dhoni added, “I was always so engrossed in the process that I never took the burden of thinking what if the result don’t go my way. (It is) something I learnt while playing tennis ball cricket on the roads of India. It is difficult. In tennis ball cricket even it’s hit from the toe of the bat the ball still travels a lot but in normal cricket it has to be the middle part of the bat, so it requires a lot of work. I don’t want them to play helicopter shots because they could get injured.”

Ajit Agarkar and VVS Laxman felt that Dhoni should step down and give youngsters a chance after watching his performance in the second T20I last week against New Zealand. Agarkar said in an interview to espncricinfo, “I think India must now look at other options, at least in T20Is. In one-day cricket, they seem to be happy with the role that he is playing. When you were the captain of the side, it was different. But just as a batsman, will India miss him, I don’t think so. In T20 cricket, it is lot easier to make that transition as there is lot of experience in that team apart from MS Dhoni now.”

Laxman, who had similar views, told NDTV, “I still feel it’s time for MS Dhoni to give youngsters a chance in T20 format. It will be an opportunity for a youngster to blossom and get confidence playing international cricket. He is definitely an integral part of ODI cricket.”

Dhoni retired from Test cricket in 2014-15 season during India’s tour of Australia. He then stepped down as the captain of the limited overs format in 2016, paving way for Virat Kohli to take on the role in all the three formats.