April 2 - India v Sri Lanka - The Final!

[AkshayS]

He selects players he thinks will work. And they have almost worked. A captain is allowed a few selection blunders and Dhoni has accepted that he made a mistake in the India-Pakistan semis game by not picking Ashwin.

A captain doesnt always need to select players that the public thinks should be selected. His selections should be judged by the results that the team achieves.

Well you just can't justify the inclusion of Chawla after ████ performance and Sreesanth in final.
He did some blunders in SA tour, too many for being the best captain but I do agree to the fact that he is the best option available to us.

 

[SaiSrini]

Well you just can't justify the inclusion of Chawla after ████ performance and Sreesanth in final.
He did some blunders in SA tour, too many for being the best captain but I do agree to the fact that he is the best option available to us.

He wanted a three pace attack in the final because of the Wankhede having good carry and bounce for the fast bowlers. Remember Zaheer (in his first spell) and Malinga (in his first spell) were menacing and bowled well re-iterating Dhoni's theory. Sreesanth didnt bowl well but that doesnt mean Dhoni's theory of going with 3 fast bowlers were wrong. He made a mistake in the Mohali match.

His theory of going with Chawla was due to the variety. But he realised that Chawla's poor bowling more than made up for the variety he offers, and he went with Ashwin. Well I would forgive him for that because eventually he made the right decisions and won us the cup.

 

[Gurjot95]

Its funny how people still hate Dhoni, if he does something wrong they would latch onto him and if he does something right they start saying "he is lucky, bla bla". Well whether you like it or not, Dhoni has been the most successful captain of India, much much better than Ganguly or any other captain India has ever had.

Dude he takes risk, which sometimes proves costly and sometimes match winning and his most risks are good for team, that's why I said he's a lucky captain. TBH I like it that he takes risks without worrying and he is no where near past captains so yeah he is the best captain which India has got but not best overall.

 

[War]

India crowned world champions: Eric Simons calls Munaf Patel the unsung hero | Cricket Features | ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 | ESPN Cricinfo

Hmm too much of compliment for Munaf that IMO. Id say IND got away with murder with Patel & where lucky he didn't get smashed more.

 

[harishankar]

To be honest and fair to Munaf, he did bowl well and his slower balls bewildered many of the batsmen. But on the whole, he is basically a line and length medium pace (sometimes medium-fast) bowler who can get clobbered if the batsmen take the initiative on a flat deck.

He was well utilized by Dhoni. I still feel he is a liability on the field and his batting is zero.

I rather think Ashwin is the unsung hero. He did well in the limited opportunities he got and was instrumental in giving the bowling the edge when it looked down and out. And Ashwin's batting and fielding >> Munaf's batting and fielding.

 

[SaiSrini]

India crowned world champions: Eric Simons calls Munaf Patel the unsung hero | Cricket Features | ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 | ESPN Cricinfo

Hmm too much of compliment for Munaf that IMO. Id say IND got away with murder with Patel & where lucky he didn't get smashed more.

Yeah agree... I am surprised that Simmons is praising Munaf as a hero of the WC win and all. I guess they share a more personal friendship than the professional relationship between a coach and a player. Munaf did OK and he could be called lucky that he didnt go for more than what he actually went for. Did well in that Pakistan semis game taking two crucial wickets, but his fielding and his attitude on the field is just disgusting. Him and Nehra are liabilities no matter how they bowl.

 

[prarara]

I'd be pretty happy if Arpy and Ishant did a Zaheer, and went to play county cricket to come back with more bite and inspiration.

 

[SaiSrini]

I have no hope in RP Singh. I do have some hope in Ishant Sharma and Irfan Pathan rediscovering their form and serving India well in the coming years.

 

[Atharv]

its really sad to see dhoni getting all the limelight! its all dhoni, dhoni and more dhoni and his "comeback" and "shuts his critics" comments all over the forums as well the media.

what about zaheer khan ? hes the unsung hero. took 21 wickets and was the leader of the pace attack. if he was out of form / injured, dhoni wouldnt even had an opportunity to "COMEBACK" !

its making me hate dhoni even more.

It would be interesting if the same logic is applied to Sourav Ganguly's captaincy . Ganguly probably captained the best side,talent wise, that Indian cricket will ever see. Dhoni does not have a team as fantastic as Ganguly had. Comparison of their stats as skipper would be interesting.

 

[Kabooka]

It would be interesting if the same logic is applied to Sourav Ganguly's captaincy . Ganguly probably captained the best side,talent wise, that Indian cricket will ever see. Dhoni does not have a team as fantastic as Ganguly had. Comparison of their stats as skipper would be interesting.

No he did not. This is by and large the best Indian Team ever.

 

[SaiSrini]

No he did not. This is by and large the best Indian Team ever.

Ganguly's team had so many players who are now called legends (Dravid, Ganguly, Tendulkar, Laxman, Kumble, Srinath, etc) and players who were at their absolute peak at that time (Harbhajan, Yuvraj, Kaif). Ganguly's team were more formidable

 

[Gaurav_7]

Yeah, agree. It is just this team is winning that many people are supporting the side.

 

[Cricketman]

Ganguly's team had so many players who are now called legends (Dravid, Ganguly, Tendulkar, Laxman, Kumble, Srinath, etc) and players who were at their absolute peak at that time (Harbhajan, Yuvraj, Kaif). Ganguly's team were more formidable

Here is the difference though - this team gels more. There is a lot more comradary (sp), teamwork, etc over individual performances. Ganguly's team was much more fragmented than the 2011 team India.

It would be interesting to see who would win in a Ganguly XI vs Dhoni XI. I would think Dhoni's team, although the bowling attack in Dadas team is probably better.

 

[AkshayS]

Individually seeing, Dada's team players were better.
But This is the time which is trying hard to be at there at the top.
Just like Cricketman said.

 

[Params7]

Ganguly's team was facing a tougher, in-prime Aussies.