Dhoni gets support from former captains Wednesday, 01 February 2012 23:29

NEW DELHI: Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s offer to step aside as India captain if a “better” candidate can be found is a noble gesture given the team’s woeful run of test form, but several former skippers believe the wicketkeeper remains the best man for the job.

In less than a year since India hit those heady heights, that assessment has been revised after India’s eight consecutive overseas test defeats, seven under Dhoni, and some believe the side need a new captain in the longer format of the game.

Former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram, however, is not among them.

“Captain-bashing is a favourite pastime of cricket pundits in the Indian subcontinent and the media just loves it,” Akram wrote in his column for www.espnstar.com.  “I believe Dhoni is the best man to lead India and will remain so in the immediate future,” wrote the former player, considered one of the greatest left-arm bowlers the game has seen.

Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar agreed. “In my view, he is still the best bet,” Gavaskar told NDTV channel, hailing Dhoni’s announcement to pave way for a more suitable candidate after his team got blanked in Australia. Former Australia captain Steve Waugh also saw no logic in the demand to replace Dhoni.

“...there is no point in changing captains for the sake of it,” Waugh wrote in a column that appeared in yesterday’s Times of India newspaper.

Especially if it meant entrusting swashbuckling opener Virender Sehwag with the duty, as has been suggested in the Indian media. Reuters

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