Dhoni’s vigour renews hope for the season

By Chetan Narula During the ODI World Cup earlier in the year, MS Dhoni was a man under pressure. It is not an odd fact given that captains of host nations usually feel the heat, and when it comes to India, just multiply that effect by a billion. Runs were slowly beginning to dry up and some of his team selections, especially pertaining to a certain spinner, were questioned. But then came that elusive cup win and as is its wont, victory brought with it all answers. But those questions resurfaced, in large fonts, over the next six months. And doubts creeping in again were based on suspicion that Dhoni was not the same man we had known for the last four years. The element of joy, stolen away from the team after their World Cup win, also seemed missing in the IPL win for Chennai Super Kings. It was more of a paid-to-do job. Intent was first questioned after the drawn Dominica Test and the tour of England proved that his mojo was lost. From there, he returned to immediately dive into Champions League T20, and after an early ouster, said this: “That’s the only blessing in disguise, a few days off, not that we have earned it, but a bit of rest will help us.” This from a man who, after pummelling Kings XI Punjab into submission at Dharamsala in 2010, had famously claimed that that it was the players’ duty to deliver the goods for franchises since they paid cricketers a lot of money. What changed, or rather, did not? A simple statistic. Ever since taking over the reins from Anil Kumble in the autumn of 2008, he has only missed three ODI series – Zimbabwe (away) and New Zealand (home) in 2010, and West Indies this past summer. Unquestionably, Dhoni was exhausted. There are others who have been in the same place. [caption id=“attachment_108639” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“It is not an odd fact given that captains of host nations usually feel the heat, and when it comes to India, just multiply that effect by a billion. AFP Photo”]  [/caption] Towards the end of 1991, Alain Prost quit Ferrari and took a one-year sabbatical from Formula One. He had been racing at this elite level since 1980 and he was tired of being part of the circus week in, week out. Most of all, he was sick of having to battle it out with Ayrton Senna, their infamous pairing at McLaren considered the most volatile rivalry of all time. It is not tough to fathom why Prost chose to cool off. Watching from the stands the world of sport seems quite glamorous, what with travelling all around the world and getting paid millions. To be honest, it is hardly that. They travel across the globe to satisfy ambition, sometimes of an automobile giant, at others of a cricket mad nation. And they get paid well because they sacrifice time away from family, risking their lives on a racetrack or jading their bodies over years spent on a cricket field. More than anything, they withstand a psychological test every time they fasten the crash helmet, or pad up as the case may be. And the end result isn’t always victory. It is easy to blow your gasket in such a situation, like Prost did when he turned on Senna at Suzuka in 1989. Dhoni didn’t have that option – he was a captain; a leader of the world champions. But it couldn’t have been easy to pad up for loss after loss on a foreign tour, watching that hard earned Test number one ranking slip away. Some say Prost was justified in doing what he did because Senna had crossed the line with his aggressive driving earlier in the season. Even so, they remember the latter’s all-out attitude for victory better. Others say Dhoni was handicapped in England because half his side was injured and the other half out of form. None of them though will ever forget the 4-0 score-line. Fresh as a lemon, Prost returned in 1993 with Williams to win his fourth world title. Indian cricketers though cannot be afforded such luxury of time. Continues on the next page All Dhoni got was less than 10 days before walking out for the toss again. Maybe he returned home to family, picked out his favourite bike and rode out on the streets at night. Or maybe he just shut the drapes and slept for days and nights on end, closing out the world, not knowing where his cricket gear was locked up. Whatever he did, it worked. For when he strode out at Hyderabad, the greyish stubble was gone. His hair seemed black again, most of it. The spring in the step wasn’t entirely back yet, but after the 126-run thrashing, none so much as mentioned queries about his Midas touch again. “Once I started batting at No. 6, I had remodelled my game. I tried a lot of aerial shots which I normally don’t play nowadays. I was practicing a lot of hitting over the cover region. I felt this was the right match to try out and it worked well,” he said, talking about his 87-run (70 balls, 10 fours and 1 six) knock. No, he isn’t ready to conquer the world again, not after just one ODI. England deserve more respect than that after what they have done to him and his boys this year. But in Dhoni’s renewed vigour is hope for the new (technically) season. Dig a little deeper and there is an inherent case for giving players a little time off, allowing them to think about the merits and demerits of their own game, away from the spotlight. Mental preparation is as significant as net practice. In a packed schedule that is sure to continue to bloat as we move along, the worth of bench strength, and player rotation therein, seems stressed. Precious commodity it may be, but an iota of rest should not be under-rated. The writer is the author of  Skipper: A Definitive Account of India’s Greatest Captains.