“India is lucky to have MS Dhoni as a captain,” says former Test batsman VVS Laxman. He accoladed Dhoni for his brilliant run in Champions Trophy and also for playing a mind-boggling innings in the final of Tri-Nation series against Sri Lanka in the West Indies.
Laxman was quoted by The Hindu saying, "His records (of winning all the world titles) speak for himself. He has that uniqueness to respond to a tough situation with ease. He does not involve himself much emotionally, and that's his quality. India is lucky to have a captain like Dhoni. Even in the tri-series, Dhoni once again stayed composed yet on the top of his game. I really appreciate the way he's instilling confidence among the young players. The credit goes to Dhoni and his team”
Though, VVS refused to draw any comparison between Sourav Ganguly and MS Dhoni, he did appreciated Dhoni for selecting the likes of Ravindra Jadeja and Shikhar Dhawan who are contributing immensely in every match they are playing. He wants this team to go a long way and not to get settled down with the Champions Trophy win.
"Dhoni backed him well especially using Jadeja as a bowler. He is also a great fielder and a handy batsman. Jadeja has emerged as a great asset to the Indian team and Dhoni should be complemented," he was quoted by Hindustan Times.
He shared the stint that he had with Dhawan during the course of IPL and said, "I mentored him during his stint at (IPL franchise) Sunrisers Hyderabad. He always had the talent and his change in approach is working well for him."
Laxman is happy to see the progress that Indian team is making and wants them to make World Cup 2015 their target. "The manner in which we beat England in England (in the Champions Trophy last month) was really commendable. The youngsters should also be credited for the performance. It's a side that's going in the right direction ahead of the World Cup 2015," he said.
The most talked about event is the Test Series against South Africa which India will play later this year and VVS wants his former teammate Sachin Tendulkar to show his best performance in most probably that is going to be the last tour of his career. Last time when Indian team went to South Africa, it was Tendulkar who scored couple of hundreds, one at Centurion and other one at Cape Town, and wristy Hyderabadi batsman wants him to continue in that manner.
Laxman was quoted by Indian Express saying, "I'm sure he would go there with a fine memory of his two hundreds. I'm sure he would have a fantastic series this time around as well. India would go there with the confidence of beating Australia 4-0. But an overseas win give you the real confidence and it teaches you a lot. I'm sure they would do well."
Laxman further hailed the Board's initiative for a India A tour in South Africa next month ahead of the November-January series.
"It's a great initiative as it would help the youngsters get some vital experience ahead of the real series," he said.
