India vs South Africa: More than pride, Dhoni needs a win at Eden Gardens to gain momentum

After the picturesque first act in Dharamasala and the bottle-flinging chaos in Cuttack, India prepare to take on South Africa at Eden Gardens, Kolkata in the third T20 International today. India has lost the series already but pride, as the cliché goes, is still at stake. But for India, there is much more to look forward to in this match than just mere pride. Momentum, more than pride, is what they should be after as they take the field at India’s most iconic stadium. India need to arrest their slide quickly or with every passing defeat, the two-month long tour will start feeling longer. [caption id=“attachment_2460172” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Mahendra Singh Dhoni. AFP.[/caption] If Dhoni was looking for answers from this series that would help him decide the composition for the World T20, so far he has ended up with more questions. He has faced criticism over dropping Ajinkya Rahane and Amit Mishra – two hugely successful IPL stars. He has been questioned over his own form. And weirdly, he seemed to question himself at the end of last match, saying he probably uses his brain in this format too much. Indications from the practice sessions in Kolkata were that Rahane and Stuart Binny, were given extended run outs in the nets. If Rahane is indeed selected, it will be interesting to see if he is given a go in the opener’s slot that he has made his own in the IPL for Rajasthan Royals. Rohit Sharma enjoys playing at the Eden Gardens - it is after all the venue where me made the world record 264 against Sri Lanka – so it will probably be Shikhar Dhawan who has to make way for Rahane. Dhawan, perhaps still recovering from the arm injury he picked up in Sri Lanka, has looked rusty in his brief stay in the middle so far. His T20 record for India is actually quite poor, with a tally of 113 runs from the eight matches he has played, with a highest of 33. It is perhaps more likely that Ambati Rayudu is the one who makes way for Rahane, given his twin failures in this series - first a sacrificial run-out in Dharamsala and then getting bowled off a full toss in Cuttack. While it is perhaps harsh to judge either player on the back of two poor performances, Dhawan and Rayudu are keeping a player of Rahane’s caliber out of the team and Dhoni should give ‘Jinks’ a go in Kolkata. Harbhajan Singh and Ravichandran Ashwin put up a good show in Cuttack with the ball, and should retain their places in the side. But Axar Patel could make way for Amit Mishra. At a venue where Gambhir went with four regular spinners in most of the matches for Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL this year, Dhoni could pick three front-line spinners and use Binny as the second seamer, to shore up the lower order batting. The Eden Gardens will bring back mixed memories for players in the Indian camp. It is the scene of Dhoni’s most recent IPL final setback where Rohit Sharma’s Mumbai Indians trounced Chennai Super Kings. Dhoni stunned everyone by choosing to bowl first on a flat track, and then watched helplessly as Rohit’s flattened his bowlers. Harbhajan Singh then bowled a crucial spell in the second innings to seal the victory. Should Dhoni win the toss, expect him to bat first and unleash the spinners on the South Africans in the second half. Like Dhoni said in his interview after the Cuttack loss, a good side is characterised not just by how many matches it wins, but by its response to defeat. With all the distractions of the Cuttack debacle over the past few days, Indian cricket could really do well with a solid performance from the players on the pitch and the fans off it.