‘MS Dhoni himself had said in an interview that he wanted to bat at number 4’: RP Singh on former captain

MS Dhoni proved himself to be one of the best finishers in limited overs cricket. Just a few days after the former skipper of Team India announced his retirement from international cricket, former pacer RP Singh feels Dhoni was a "completely different beast" batting at the deep end.

The left-arm fast bowler added that the wicketkeeper-batsman could have played higher at number four but probably went in at five or six to bear the pressure better.

In an interview with cricket.com, RP Singh was asked if he found it “strange” that Dhoni did not get to bat at number four more often despite enjoying the support of the management. RP Singh, who has played under Dhoni in the maiden T20 World Cup in 2007, said, “If I am not wrong, MS himself had said in an interview that he wanted to bat at number 4 but maybe team thought there was none better than him to absorb the pressure in the late order.”

“If you talk about the history of the game,” Singh added, “you will never get a player like Dhoni who has won so many matches from batting at that position”.

He also mentioned that the postponement of the T20 World Cup might have affected Dhoni’s retirement news. Singh stated that Dhoni's retirement might have been influenced by other factors like age and fitness. He pointed out how the player “hardly got any opportunity” to display his batting skills for the last year.