For India's revival, MS Dhoni needs to go beyond his paintball theory

Just before the start of the fourth Test between India and Australia at the Sydney Cricket Ground, Mahendra Singh Dhoni made his way to the Spartan tent and learnt the art of crafting a bat. A match was going to be played and he simply didn’t need to pay attention – he didn’t need to strategise or watch videos or offer advice. It was the kind of carefree act that Dhoni had not managed in the last decade. In a certain sense, he was finally free. He didn’t attend practices in the lead-up to the Test then he helped the team during practice on the morning of the Test – because he wanted to, not because he had to. In between, he met John Abraham and before he knew it – the ODI tri-series was upon us. Time flies when you are doing things you really want to. It feels just like yesterday that Dhoni announced his retirement from Test cricket and already, it is time to get back to the grind… still, the effects of this break; of this unloading of responsibility should be felt now. Mentally, he should be refreshed and ready to go again – knowing that he is going to have time for himself; for his bikes; for family; for his many business interests and for a format that he truly enjoys. [caption id=“attachment_2057139” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File photo of MS Dhoni with team-mates. Getty Images[/caption] For all the criticism that Dhoni has received for his captaincy/batting/tactics in Test cricket, there are few international cricketers who understand the vagaries of the shorter format better than the Indian skipper. He knows when he needs to begin the final push or when to wait it out – but perhaps most importantly he knows how to win even when the going gets tough. Twenty wickets are not the key in ODI cricket – even ten wickets aren’t. It is all about runs and when you can narrow it down like that… Dhoni generally becomes lethal. But for the next three months – India will be playing Down Under, in conditions that don’t exactly cater to India’s strongest bowling suit – namely spinners. In a career spanning 252 ODIs, Dhoni has only played 12 ODIs in Australia with 7 losses, 4 wins and 1 NR. And is that sort of experience enough to win in Australia – more importantly does it cover for the inexperience of his team-mates? To his credit, Dhoni has won a one-day series there – in 2008 and that is one of only two times that India have won a tri-series Down Under. The other win came in 1985. India have never won a bilateral series in Australia. This year, though, the pitches have been far flatter than anything we have seen in the past. The conditions have been described as ‘un-Australian’ and even ‘Indian’ by some. But still the fast bowlers have had a greater say in the proceedings and that hits India hard. It also means that Dhoni needs to find a way to somehow make his batting even better. Ravi Shastri, India’s team director, believes Dhoni will play even better cricket now. “He retired from Tests because he didn’t feel he was doing justice to himself or the team. This will allow him to focus on what he enjoys. I see him playing even better in limited-overs cricket,” said Shastri. So far, we haven’t seen the better Dhoni emerge. He is one of the best finishers in the game, he averages 52.85, his tactics are tried and test (albeit in different conditions) and he has nerves of steel. Honestly, the only thing Dhoni can better in ODIs is captaincy. Can the new, unshackled Dhoni inspire a team to great heights… to their first victory (India are now winless in eight matches on their four month-plus tour of Australia with the World Cup still to come) That is a question that he will need to answer. Stephen Fleming’s great strength as skipper was that even when he lacked players, he found ways to get best out of his team. Mike Brearley figured ways to transform mediocre players into good ones and good ones into great ones. In his book, ‘The Art of Captaincy’, Brearley writes: “A leader has to be able and willing to take in and think about the anxiety of those who work in the team. Sometimes it is a mater of getting to the bottom of the anxiety that has already been covered over. It has then to be conveyed often subtly, to those in the team that their predicament and anxieties are bearable.’ This Indian team needs Dhoni to step up in that regard; to show that being India’s best skipper goes beyond just winning and losing. In a typically sarcastic gesture from the Indian skipper after the humbling defeat against England on Tuesday, he said he may organise a paintball session against journalists in a bid to spark his side after their underwhelming tour reached a new low. He also admitted his side had to find a way to “stay fresh” ahead of the ODI against Australia in Sydney on January 26. But India’s best course of action after a big defeat can’t be just rest or paintball – especially when the bowlers can’t consistently maintain a good line and length and their shot-selection leaves a lot to be desired. They need something more concrete; something more old-school like practice. The strategy has to be: Win now and rest later – in the lead-up to the World Cup. It can’t be: Relax now, lose matches and confidence and go into the World Cup that way. Fleming, who also coaches Dhoni’s IPL side Chennai Super Kings, told Firstpost before the Indian team left for Australia: “They have got to manage themselves well and the best way to manage yourself is to win. If you play well, you have energy and things go okay. You spend a lot of energy on other things when you are losing and if they have a tough tour like what they had in England, it is going to be hard to pick themselves up. Players will feel a little bit flat.” It should also be noted that during the Test series – MS Dhoni, R Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Rohit Sharma, Umesh Yadav and Mohd. Shami all got some time off as a result of being dropped, rested or retired. Akshar Patel, Ambati Rayudu and Stuart Binny weren’t even part of the Test team. It’s often said a captain is only as good as his team but somehow Dhoni needs to find a way to make his team as good as him in ODIs at least. It won’t be easy but it is India’s only chance and one doubts the paintball theory will help in that regard.