Gavaskar on Dhoni’s presence in ODIs: Dhoni’s presence has assured the former Indian captain of stability in the dressing room.
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The thought of a talk show making life difficult for so many people never came across anyone’s mind until India opening batsman Lokesh Rahul and all-rounder Hardik Pandya made their presence felt (in its truest sense) on renowned talk show Koffee With Karan.
The severe aftermath of the same is that the duo has been ruled out from India’s first ODI against Australia at Sydney to be played tomorrow.
Apart from the two cricketers’ misogynist comments affecting them individually, it has also affected the Indian team’s balance a day before the first ODI. Pandya, who was certain to make a comeback into the team after nearly four months, will have to wait for the same now.
Sunil Gavaskar, former India captain and the first batsman to cross the 10,000-run mark in Test cricket, has given the impression of the team remaining unaffected with how the whole controversy has unfolded.
Speaking on Aaj Tak, Gavaskar opined that former India captain and current wicket-keeper batsman Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s return will bring back sanity into the team and they will bounce back well to win the ODI series too.
Gavaskar said that whatever happened on the show was uncalled for and unwanted but Dhoni, with his calm and cool presence, will bring back the lost control among the players.
It is worth mentioning that Dhoni himself will be playing any form of cricket after nearly two and a half months.
Speaking during the press conference ahead of the first ODI, India captain Virat Kohli clearly mentioned that the incident won’t dampen the spirits of other players in the dressing room.
In Pandya’s absence, India might look to play all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja and accommodate a specialist fast bowler in place of a wrist-spinner.