To the delight of the cricket fans in the country, MS Dhoni seemed back in his classic ‘finisher’ avatar as he helped India chase their 231-run target and register their maiden bilateral ODI series win in Australia on 18 January.
The wicketkeeper-batsman came in to bat at No 4, joining captain Virat Kohli at the crease after Shikhar Dhawan fell for 23. Lucky enough to be dropped on 0 and then 74, Dhoni went on to score an unbeaten 87 as India won the third and final ODI by 7 wickets and clinched the three-match series 2-1. And while the No 4 batting position continues to be highly debated, former skipper Dhoni said he’d be happy to bat lower down the order as well.
“Well, it’s good (to bat at No 4), but I’m happy to bat at five or six. Whether I play at 4 or 6, we need to see if the team balance can be retained. After playing for 14 years, I can’t really say that I can’t bat at 4 or 5 or 6. I’ll bat wherever the teams needs me to.”MS Dhoni
Talking about the match, he said “It was a slow wicket, so it was difficult to hit whenever you wanted to. It was important to take it deep. There was no point going after the bowlers who are doing well, so that was the gameplan, of course supported brilliantly by Kedar, who plays unorthodox shots,” said Dhoni after he was named Man of the Series for scoring three half-centuries in three matches, including two that were for the winning cause.
‘It’s Been an Amazing Tour’
India became the first country to return from Australia without losing a single series, having won the Test series 2-1 and drawn the T20 Internationals 1-1. Leading the Men in Blue was Virat Kohli, who said:
“We’ve been here for a long time and couldn’t have asked for a better tour. If you had given me these results before the tour, I would have gladly taken it. We feel pretty confident.”Virat Kohli, India Captain
"It wasn't an easy wicket to bat on, so it was important to take the game deep," said the Indian skipper Virat Kohli.
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