Retirement is solely Mahendra Singh
Dhoni's prerogative but chairman of selectors MSK
Prasad on Sunday clearly stated that
young Rishabh
Pant will be "groomed" as India's first choice keeper across
formats in the coming days.
Dhoni has not announced his retirement from international cricket amid widespread speculations but has made himself unavailable
for the next two months as he will be serving his regiment in the territorial army.
Without divulging much on two-time World Cup winning captain's future plans,
Prasad said that a legend like
Dhoni knows when to retire but the future course of Indian cricket will be charted by the selectors.
"Retirement is purely individual (decision). A legendary cricketer like
Dhoni, he knows when to retire. What is the future course of action, that is in the hands of the selection committee. I don't think we need to discuss anything more on it. First of
all he is not available. Second, we have already started grooming youngsters,"
Prasad said at the media conference.
The former India Test keeper wants
Pant to get as many opportunities as he gets ready to fill in the big shoes of
Dhoni in the coming days.
"He (
Dhoni) is unavailable
for the series. He has expressed his unavailability. Having said that we had a certain roadmap and plans till the World Cup. Post World Cup, we have laid down a few more plans and we thought of giving as many opportunities as possible to Rishabh
Pant and and to see, he is groomed. That is our plan right now and we did discuss this with him (
Dhoni)," said
Prasad.
Pant was already the number one choice in Tests and now with uncertainty over
Dhoni's future, he has become the preferred choice in
all
three
formats.
The 21-year-old is a powerhouse of talent but at times, his shot selection in crucial moments have been questioned including in India's World Cup semfinal loss to New Zealand.
However,
Prasad praised
Pant
for his innings of 32 against the Black Caps
after India lost
three wickets
for five runs chasing 240.
"He played well. Especially in those conditions, he batted really well," he added.