Former India all-rounder Robin Singh backs MS Dhoni for 2019 World Cup

Ajit Vijaykumar 15:35 27/11/2018
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  • MS Dhoni was omitted from India's T20 squad.

    Former India all-rounder Robin Singh believes wicketkeeper MS Dhoni should be a part of the side that will travel to England for the 2019 World Cup.

    Over the last season, Dhoni’s spot in the limited overs set-up has come under scrutiny with the rise of young gloveman Rishabh Pant and the resurgence of Dinesh Karthik. Dhoni has already found himself out of the T20 mix and there are some who believe that his time is up in ODI cricket as well.

    But Singh said that Dhoni should be a part of India’s World Cup squad because players such as Pant haven’t made the most of their chances in white ball cricket.

    “Dhoni should be there (at World Cup). Those who were given opportunities have not stamped their authority,” Singh told Sport360.

    But even with Dhoni in the team, Singh feels it’s India’s bowling that will need to step up in England.

    “India are one of the front-runners. England are a very good side, they have been playing very good cricket. In their conditions they are extremely good.

    “I played in England in 1999 and the wickets are very good for batting. What is key is bowling. To make a difference the fast bowlers will have to come into the mix,” he added.

    While the World Cup is six months away, India’s immediate target is the Test series in Australia which starts next week. Virat Kohli’s boys suffered a 2-1 setback in South Africa and a crushing 4-1 defeat in England. In both the series India’s batting revolved around Kohli and the others failed to deliver. However, the former all-rounder – who runs the Robin Singh Sports Academy in Dubai – does not think that India are too reliant on Kohli and backed the No1 Test team to prevail Down Under.

    “I don’t think we are dependent too much on Kohli. We have enough batting to take Indian cricket forward. We won the Asia Cup in the UAE without Virat. Obviously he is a super star, but it is crucial that we also guide the young guys. The team’s chances are very good, they have a good chance of beating Australia,” the veteran coach added.

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