Former Indian opening batsman Krishnamachari Srikkanth wants former captain, MS Dhoni, to play in the T20 world cup which is scheduled to begin on October 18th this year, as he says he is his one of the biggest fans.
Without IPL Dhoni’s Chances Will Become Very Less: Srikkanth
But he also thinks the odds of him appearing in the mega event are against him if IPL does not happen, as it would be for more than one year where he had not played any matches when the world cup begins.
Dhoni last played cricket in the semis of last year’s world cup against New Zealand where India lost the match.
Srikkanth also believes Pant and Rahul have played a significant amount of white-ball cricket which might help them edge out Dhoni in the selection process.
He feels that the only thing that might favour Dhoni is his experience as a cricketer playing for the country for more than 15 years.
“Both Rahul and Pant have been a regular part of white-ball squad so that the selection can go in their favour. The odds are stacked up against Dhoni, but he can spring a surprise.
If there is no IPL and if India directly goes into T20 World Cup in Australia, how will selectors choose Dhoni? The only thing that could come in his favour is that he has played a lot for the country, but this looks highly improbable according to me,” Srikkanth said.
“It Would Be A Tough Call For Selectors”
Srikkanth also says he is lucky that he is not a selector now as it would be difficult for anyone to make a call and if they chose Dhoni somehow and if he does not play well and India doesn’t win the cup they will face huge criticism.
“I would say I am lucky that I am not a selector. The dilemma is with the spectators it will be a huge challenge. It would be a tough call, personally I think it is stacked against Dhoni. It is a monumental task, knowing the sentiments of cricket followers in the country, it would be difficult for the selectors. If the selectors stick their neck out for Dhoni and if he doesn’t perform and we do not win the World Cup, it can bring a lot of criticism towards the team and selectors,” he added.
