Dravid: Toughest player to bowl

Well the Indian test batsman-Rahul Dravid cites the recently concluded 2^nd test venue as the toughest one may be because he couldn't score more than 5 runs unlike the Jamica test where he was awarded the man of the match award for his fighting century. Well, if not for V V S Laxman, no other Indian batsman could really stand up to the occasion in the 2^nd test at Bridgetown. With that, it becomes another reason for anyone to term it as a tough pitch to bat on let alone Rahul Dravid. But still, West Indies has to be a tough pitch with its high rising bounce.

This is the reason why bowlers like Andy Roberts, Michael Holding, Joel Garner and Malcolm Marshall had their birth in the West Indies similar to some Muttiah Muralitharan coming from Sri Lanka and B S Chandrashekar hailing from India. The next generation bowlers from the West Indies like Curtly Ambrose, Courtney Walsh and Ian Bishop made life tough for batsmen despite not receiving enough support from the batsmen. Even today, players like Merv Dillon, Vesbert Drakes and Dwayne Bravo have little problems in bowling a high bounce delivery. But, with the batting line up being completely being whitewashed, nothing much can be expected.

After the retirement of the batting legend-Brian Lara, there is no one who can withstand the pressure despite the likes of Chris Gayle and Shivnarine Chanderapaul having the presence. However, all these should not be the reason for Dravid's remarks Instead these are the pitches one of their kind when the bounce they offer can blow away anyone's helmet. on the Caribbean soil or pitches.The words came from Rahul Dravid a bit late when the same should have made rounds a decade ago when Dravid made his appearance first. And, one has to wonder why no one else has said this but Dravid.

However, if the player under consideration is given a close look at, he is one such player bowling to whom can only be a nightmare. Rahul Dravid never scores runs at a brisk pace like some Virender Sehwag or Yuvraj Singh. Neither does Dravid has the temperament that Sachin Tendulkar has who can get to big scores without compromising with the team's victory. Someone like Dravid can hardly get out which is the reason why he is referred to as "the wall of Indian cricket". It is tough to get Dravid out no matter how many wickets are down for team India.

Something similar between Lara & Sachin

It is not an undisputed fact that Brian Lara and Sachin Tendulkar are the finest of all batsmen of their era. The decade has seen batsmen like Inzamam Ul Haq who could pull his team out from the jaws of defeat in the semi finals of the 1992 world cup which Pakistan eventually won. Then there is Shahid Afridi, who claims that his favourite shot is "anywhere for six" and holds the record for the fastest hundred in ODIs and then there is Jayasuriya who holds the record for the maximum number of sixes in one day cricket. Otherwise also we have gr8 batsmen like Ponting, Gilchrist, Symonds etc who have been exceptional with the willow.

However, the world of cricket, if the last 15 years or so are considered, the only batsmen who have been enjoying a huge fan following are only two- Sachin Tendulkar and Brian Lara. No one would dare to rate any other batsmen among these two greats and so would I. A Sachin fan can justify himself with most of the batting records in both formats of the game belonging to him. But, as far as Brian Lara is considered, if not for the unbeaten score of 400 against England, none of the records really belong to him in either formats of the game.

If Lara is given a little bit of concession, he held the world record for the highest number of runs in international test cricket until it was broke by none other than Sachin Tendulkar. Lara stands fifth when it comes to the number of 100s scored behind Sachin, Jayasuriya, Ponting & Ganguly. Lara's place when it comes to the highest run aggregate would be behind Dravid, Ganguly, Inzy, Jayasuriya and of course Sachin. But, there was one thing that struck my mind when Sachin scored an unbeaten 200 yesterday against South Africa.This was Sachin's 2nd score over 180 which is in par with two 350+ scores of Lara in tests.

It was somewhere in October 2003 that Australia's Mathew Hayden scored 380 runs against Zimbabwe to break the old record of 375 put up by Lara against England in 1994. Exactly six months later, Brian Lara notched up the first quadruple hundred in test cricket that broke Mathew Hayden's record and also was a new landmark in tests. Similarly, in ODIs, in August 2009, Charles Coventry scored an unbeaten 194 against Bangladesh which broke Saeed Anwar's record of the same score without the asterik symbol following it. And exactly after the same duration of 6 months, Sachin scores 200* which also put up a new landmark but in ODIs. Moreover, both Lara & Sachin use bats that are sponsored by MRF.

India Versus Weather?

Well all tongues have started wagging in the favour of team India as favourites to win the test series against New Zealand in New Zealand may be for the first time in the history of Indian cricket if the experts are to be believed. And this looked pretty obvious and is still looking the same despite some or rather frequent disruptions from weather that is trying to play a spoilsport at Wellington. And even if rain or weather gods prefer New Zealand over India, the result sheet would still read "India have won the test series against New Zealand 1-0". The only disappointment would be due to the fact that despite fighting so hard a 2-0 result could not be achieved.

Had it been some two or three years down the lane, in the sense when it was either Rahul Dravid or Sourav Ganguly who were captaining the Indian side, even a 1-0 margin would have bought up smiles of joy on the faces of the Indian players. Because, that was all that the then Indian team under Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly or even Anil Kumble for that matter could do. But, that does not seem to be the case with Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Ever since he has captained the Indian side, the worst result he could expect was a draw. A loss to M S Dhoni is still far off I believe.

Ever since Mahendra Singh Dhoni has taken over from the shoes of Anil Kumble, or even earlier to that, the team has been not only victorious but also in a dominating position in every department of the game and in all three forms of the game too. The worst series result for M S Dhoni being the 1-0 series win against England where the second test ended in a draw. Otherwise it has been 1 out of 1 against the Proteas, two out of two against the Aussies, not two out of two against the Kiwis as well. Compared to Dhoni's, if Dravid is placed at the other end, his tally reads 1 out of 3 against England in 2007, 1 out of 4 against the West Indies in 2006 and a win in South Africa only to lose the 2nd and 3rd test.

Likewise, Anil Kumble has had successes like 1 out of 3 against Pakistan late 2007 followed by 2 draws against the Aussies in the B-G trophy in the tests which he captained. Well lets not go to the days where Mohammed Azharuddin and Sourav Ganguly had captained the team. The weather is found threatening to see a 1-0 result for Dhoni as well. This being evident from the days 3 and 4 where play could not be completed as per plan. In case the weather behaves to be neutral, like the umpires on the field, then 2/2 for Dhoni thins time is already carved on stones. But, will that really happen? Lets wait and watch.

Why Is Dravid Being Made The Scapegoat?

The picture is right in front of us, after the first inaugural edition of the Indian Premier League. Royal Challengers Bangalore finished last but one, only ahead of Deccan Chargers. This would obviously hurt, irritate and even make the sponsorer go mad, after investing the second highest amount in the tournament/league. For, Vijay Mallya invested a huge 442 crores for Royal Challengers team, that was just one crore less than that invested for the Mumbai Indians which was 443 crores. Well, that is not the discussion of the hour. All that Vijay Mallya could do was to sack the team manager Charu Sharma. Not a bad move, though not a good one.

And the recent news was that Rahul Dravid would no more be leading the side. In other words, Rahul Dravid's credibility in taking his team forward is being questioned by the owner. And more over, its been a buzz that Rahul Dravid has even been put up for sale. No idea regarding how true the story is. However, this is not good news and not fair on the part of Vijay Mallya. For, it was only because of Dravid that Royal Challengers ended a place above the Deccan Chargers. Else, the team would have been placed at the last position. No doubt that Dravid's style of play is more suited for the test cricket and not for T20 game which is the one concerned.

But, if Dravid can adapt himself to this format of the game, which is not considered his cup of tea, it really deserves much applause for it. I think it is still in the memories of Vijay Mallya the way Rahul Dravid snatched victory against the runners up of the tournament- Chennai Superkings, when all would have thought otherwise. And the way he belted an unbeaten 75 off just 35 balls against the champions- Rajasthan Royals is something noteworthy. All these with the above mentioned fact that he is a test player basically. Still if Vijay Mallya thinks of axing Dravid and even tries to get rid of him by auctioning him, I feelt that Mallya's cricketing knowledge has to be reconsidered.

If Dravid has to be axed, if Vijay Mallya is to be believed, so should be Wassim Jaffer and Sunil Joshi. And god knows as to what made Vijay Mallya think of having Zaheer Khan sacked inspite of him being among the leading wicket takers in that edition? And how successsful was Robin Uttappa in the Mumbai Indians' side? Why doesn't Vijay Mallya curse himself for bidding money on players like Sunil Joshi, Virat Kohli and Wassim Jaffer who don't even have the ability to stand for a long time like in test matches, forget about a T20 bash? If this is the way someone like Vijay Mallya thinks, I wish even the IPL chaiman Lalit Modi should consider sacking Mallya as a sponsorer who does not know to pick the right players for the game. But, money makes many things.

Rahul Dravid : Back To The Pavilion

On the first day of the second test match between India and England, at Mohali, it was all cheers for Mr Dependable of Indian cricket batting- Rahul Dravid. As all expected, Rahul Dravid did make his critics come false what so ever. by scoring a fighting 136. All this happened in a test match which was a nerve testing one, especially for Rahul Dravid, whom the selectors had decided to send him down the batting order, or drop him from the coming test matches. None of which happened. And that wouldn't have been fair for a batsman of the caliber of Rahul Dravid, given his run in test cricket, that has lasted for more than a decade or so.

And it was as though the selectors, as well as captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni who was right not to have dealt with Rahul Dravid, in the ways that were said. So did the man himself prove on day 1 of the second test at Mohali, by scoring a much needed knock of 136, to put India in a commanding position, with the innings ending at 453 and Rahul Dravid having a 319 run partnership with Gautam Gambhir. Else, one could as to what would have been the fate of team India, in the Mohali test. A mere 134 run contribution from the blades of the rest put together. So, Dravid did need a pat on his back for this.

And if this knock was thought to be enough to douse the fire that was found to burn RahulDravid, there was yet another spark that was found to alight the doused fire, which came in the second innings of the Mohali test, where Rahul Dravid scored another 19 ball duck. This time being bowled by Stuart Broad. And at a time when the going wasn't too good either. None of the other Indian batsmen barring Gautam Gambhir led the Indian assault and the regained form of Rahul Dravid was the quint-essential of the day. But no. Anotherdisappointment was awaiting Rahul Dravid and his fans.

Nevermind that India have taken an unbeatable lead in the series, and, the second test is heading towards a draw, with most of the play delayed owing to bad light. And I feel that this would over shadow the downfall of Rahul Dravid. For the saying goes "All Is Well That Ends Well", when the series has not witnessed anything unwanted, I don't think that Rahul Dravid should do it either. And God knows as to when would India be playing their full fledged test series, with the series against Pakistan being canceled. So, according to the ICC tours table, the next major test series would be somewhere in March 2009, which is a long way from now. So, until then, there is no reason as to why Rahul Dravid shouldn't improve his performance.

Royal Challengers......?

Hmm..when the name Royal Challengers come to someone's mind one thing is for sure..either they are considered to be talentless,unlucky,not hard working..etc...But, if one could watch the match between the Royal Challengers Bangalore and the Delhi Daredevils,one difference that could be seen is that the Delhi Daredevils were found to make a tough going when the going got to be tougher and tougher.This was what the Royal Challengers Bangalore were found lacking.Throughout the tournament,all that the Royal Challengers could manage was a shuffle in their batting order and nothing else.Also some selfishness in the bowling department wherein there was a leading bowler in Zaheer Khan who emerged as one of the leading wicket takers though not helping his team win or even save some face for his team.

And this time in the match against Delhi Daredevils,Oh!what a fantastic position they were in when they had a 24 run last over courtesy:Misbah-Ul-Haq.Though not a decent total posted by the Royal Challengers Bangalore,there's no rule that it shouldn't have been defended.Likewise,the best example being the Kolkata Knight Riders who rattled the stumps of the same Delhi Daredevils when the total they were defending was a handy 134.What's something special in Shoaib is that his hand bends legally and that shouldn't have been a major threat-because the same bowler was shown the gallows by Sanath Jayasuriya against Mumbai Indians.

Now,I guess the debate of the hour is the lack of a batsman of the caliber of Jayasuriya?Why are the likes of Jacques Kallis and Misbah (who nearly pulled off a win in the finals of the T20 finals) there for?

And coming to the latter part of the same,a complete control after Sehwag left should have made much use of.For,the Delhi Daredevils were struggling at 123/4 (3 wickets for 33 runs).But...?

All eyes on how to make Anil Kumble a scape goat now have to look out for someone else as the team had him ending up with figures of 2/18 off his allotted 4 overs.A test like stats.Wow!And at last,it is too much late for Goswamy.And Virender Sehwag is really worth the praise for he led the Delhi Daredevils courtesy:19 ball 47.Yet once again missing out on scoring the fastest IPL fifty.So Sad!!!

Too Much For The Royal Challengers' Team

This is the match between the Royal Challengers Bangalore and the Rajasthan Royals which the Rajasthan Royals as expected thrashed the Royal Challengers Bangalore by some relief serving 65 runs (compared to their crushing defeat in the previous matches).The first time when the two teams met in the first round robin stage,the Royal Challengers were royally thrashed by 7 wickets with 17 balls remaining.A modest total of 135 that would hardly worry the team consisting of players of the batting caliber of Yousuf Pathan,Swapnil Asnodkar,Justin Langer,Kamran Akmal and Shane Warne who did wonders in the first match against the Deccan Chargers.

This I bet would have been the worst defeat that Rahul Dravid would have had to think over,for it came despite a mind blowing innings of a 36 ball unbeaten 75.And who wouldn't be? With as many as 6 huge sixes and an equal number of boundaries. Isn't this an almost impossible task as far as Dravid's batting style is taken into consideration?

The bowling done by the Royal Challengers team was all the most fascinating.If not all of them,I bet most of them were full-tosses.None of the bowlers really bothered about maintaining any line or length.Just like the Sehwag saying "If the ball is there to be hit I will go for it"...something like..and the bowlers were just like that..."If the ball is there to be bowled we'll go for it"..no matter what length or line.

Congrats Anil kumble on taking the first wicket of the tournament!And the rest of the Royal Challengers' batsmen failing to cross the two digit mark and my goodness 4 ducks!!Good bowling or poor batting?Well you readers choose..

The next time a team takes on the Royal Challengers Bangalore,I would suggest that the team rest most of its frontline bowlers.Atleast then can the match be interesting?Well not!

Same Faces Again And Again

Well the match between the Royal Challengers Bangalore and Rajasthan Royals as usual,not to mention..well I guess the result has already been guessed.Thats true..Well lets forget that.There's lots and lots that we can talk about the match.So lets not get our moods rotten by talking about Royal Challengers and their plight in the inaugural edition of the Indian Premier League.

It is once again Shaun Marsh who was the match winner in the match against Royal Challengers Bangalore too as he was in the match against Kolkata Knight Riders. Some things-some good and the rest of them bad can and will never change. With the same people emerging as the match winners in each and every game they face.Some examples being Yousuf Pathan,Shane Watson,Brendon McCullum,Goutam Gambhir ...While there are some like Virender Sehwag,Sanath Jayasuriya,Adam Gilchrist etc who are good only on their particular days...while the third category which includes the likes of Rahul Dravid,Shahid Afridi,V V S Laxman..who are never found to fire what so ever.

Same match But Different Result

With the second round already in progress,the result is somewhat the same as compared to the first stage.If not completely true,it isn't completely false either.Atleast for Kolkata Knight Riders and for Royal Challengers Bangalore none-the-less.With the first clash between the same two teams proving to be a one-sided encounter,with the Kolkata Knight Riders walking away with all credits,courtesy Brendon McCullum's 73 ball 158*.

But this time in the second edition,the Royal Challengers as they usually do not seem to do,were found to give the Kolkata Knight Riders a run for their for their money.The Royal Challengers came so close to beating the Knight Riders that the match was on until the vary last ball.But,as usual,there can be one and only one winner.That alas!turned out to be the Kolkata Knight Riders as usual.

But still some positives that I could find out from the match being that the awesome work done by the bowling department of Zaheer khan and co (not Sunil Joshi and co as I usually quote) to restrict the Knight Riders' batsmen to a partly total of just 129 from 16 overs in a rain hit match was not able to sustain by their batsmen.It looked as though the Royal Challengers were playing an individual game rather than a team sport that is supposed to be played.

The Royal Challengers had 6 wickets in hand but still were found to end up in the losing side.Not hats off to even Cameron White who blasted 15 runs off the 11th over nor to the innings of Mark Boucher-who belted 24 runs of 10 balls after taking 30 deliveries to score 26.To be noted that it is a T20 game that is involved and not a one-day international.

Likewise the Kolkata Knight Riders were found to play better cricket for they were found making use of as much as 7 batsmen.While the Royal Challengers wasted the talent of Vinay kumar and Virat kohli who were supposedly included in the team taking into account their batting ability.And at last not to forget the all round performance by the captain Sourav Ganguly who had his counterpart bowled.

Kings XI Punjab Have An Easy Prey

A fourth victory on the trot for the kings XI Punjab meant winning five games in a row for them as they were supposed to take on the non countable team in Royal Challengers Bangalore who are not at all counted to be an opposition by anyone.Even the Deccan Chargers-who are next to them when it comes to losing I guess.And this is what exactly happened on May 5th when Kings XI Punjab trounced Royal Challengers Royally at the Chinnaswamy Stadium by 6 wickets.

The Royal Challengers needless to say,have already registered the lowest total of the IPL when they were all out for a score of 82 in the very first encounter against another minnow team in Kolkata Knight Riders.And after this humiliating defeat,the Royal Challengers never lost their way.They kept on following the steps paved in the first match.And the match against Kings XI Punjab.

Well it would be a foolish advice to expect the Royal Challengers Team stand up and show some teeth because they have already given it up.Not a guess!The only chance for the Royal Challengers would be the team who challenges them when it comes to losing badly.One hope would be off course Deccan Chargers.But still,it is hard to believe that the highest wicket taker in the tournament being Zaheer Khan who belongs to Royal Challengers.Isn't it?

Vow Even The Royal Challengers Can Win!!!

After most of humiliating defeats in most part of the tournament,finally,the Royal Challengers could afford to snatch a victory.Though not fully deserving,atleast there was some relief for the crowd and the cheer leaders who had come over there to cheer the Royal Challengers.For a change,even the unlikey to fire batsmen of the caliber of V V S Laxman,Wassim Jaffer and Rahul Dravid were found to do some sort of contribution with the bat.However,even the Deccan Chargers are no way less when it comes to losing games.But,the difference being the big hitting names like Andrew Symonds,Adam Gilchrist,Rohith Sharma...unlike the Royal Challengers who are duped by the selection of Rahul Dravid.Jaques Kallis and Mark Boucher being the only positives when it comes to the batting involving power hitting.And on the other side with the likes of only Zaheer Khan to provide some sort of relief when given the ball in hand.

The only interesting ones that I can suggest is that between two weak teams and the other is that involving two strong teams.Unluckily,the match between Royal Challengers Banaglore and the Deccan Chargers falls into the first category.

Glenn McGrath-The Old War Horse

Well..it is a real waste of time,money and energy for people to once again think about Royal Challengers who are bound to disappoint almost every now and then.So,let us cast our eyes on the Delhi Daredevils who had a wonderful night out there at the Firoz Shah Kotla stadium.The first praise from me would go to Gautam Gambir,who scored a blasting 86 off 54 balls to provide Glenn McGrath the momentum to cut the heads off the Royal Challengers royally.The knock was worth the praise as the rest of the batsmen if not for Shikar Dhawan were found struggling even against a cheap bowling attack of Sunil Joshi and co..

Even Zaheer Khan-one of the leading bowlers in the tournament is not able to handle pressure and lead his side to victory.But,lets forget that.And as my last post quoted regarding the breaking of the fastest hundreds in the tournament,the same happened even in case of the best bowling performance.Sanath Jayasuriya's last night's feat of 3/14 against Kolkata Knight Riders was overtaken in just one match by Glenn McGrath who took figures of 4/29 from his alloted four overs.

The lanky Australian pacer can never be taken for granted in any form of the game I guess.And some positives for Dravid that he was somewhere close to playing a one day match where until last game was found to play a test game(even worse than that by scoring two golden ducks).But,that's a gone case altogether.An accurate bowling(even without swing,bounce and pace) can do wonders be it a test or a T20. And thats what Glenn McGrath once again proved that in the match against Royal Challengers.Kudos to U!!!

It Looks Like The Royal Challengers Aren't interested in Winning!!

A third consecutive loss in the tournament for a team that has all test playing players, who could not even make it even after the visitors gave as many as four lives to the hosts,one in the form of Taylor and three in the form of Wassim Jaffer.But,the home team had different plans I guess.First it was in the bowling department,which saw the Chennai Super Kings go past the 175+ mark,when the going seemed tough from the initial overs wherein the Chennai Super Kings were reeling at 102/3 in 15 overs,to see the Chennai Super Kings end up putting a total of 178/5,76 runs coming from the last five overs.And Dhoni,who was found to score at run a ball,was found blasting all over the stadium to end up with an individual score of 65 off just 30 balls.

And things were not difficult either for the Royal Challengers' team,when even test playing batsman of the caliber of Wassim Jaffer and Ross Taylor were found to dominate with the bat.And the great "Rahul Dravid" was found to get his second Golden Duck in the tournament.Dropping three catches didn't stop Royal Challengers from ending as losers for the third time in the series,all three at home.The score of the Royal Challengers' team comes out to be 55 for 8 with Jaffer's and Taylor's knock alog with 7 extras kept apart.

Well if there is one captain in M.S.Dhoni who could fight until the very end to see to that his team puts up a fighting total at the end,there was also a hopeless captsin in Rahul Dravid who could do nothing but wash his hands and accept defeat with both hands.

Royal Challengers Or Royal Losers?

After some consolation win against Mumbai Indians at Mumbai,there was some relief for the Royal Challengers team.Though the win not being a convincing one as far as the Royal Challengers were concerned,it could have been a motivation for the upcoming matches involving tough teams like Kings XI Punjab,Delhi Daredevils and Chennai Superstars.But,as a Banglorean,it was once again disappointing for me especially since the Royal Challengers were back to their routine of losing matches. And this time they did just the same,by forfeiting the match to Rajasthan Royals.The word Royal being common to both the teams out there.But,only one team emerged as Royals,and that being the Rajasthan team.

If not for Ross Taylor who scored 44 runs off 20 balls,it was as though the rest of them were playing a one day match over there.Most of the strike rates falling between 100 and 150 and some even in the range of less than 100.And as it usually happens with the Royal Challengers,six out of ten batsmen had strike rates of less than 100.And our gr8 Rahul Dravid could score nothing but a golden duck.It looks like the Wall has mistaken the word Golden duck with that of a goose that lays golden eggs.Ha ha Just kidding!!!

Dhoni & Hayden Style..

Its nothing new regarding the way batsman like M.S.Dhoni, Virender Sehwag..like to finish off the match or be it getting into the landmark they were fast approaching.And Dhoni last night against Kolkata knight Riders did just that.A formal if not massive six to put an end to Kolkata Knight Riders' fate and also to seal Chennai Super Kings' fortunes.

On the other hand even Hayden was not ready to compromise either.One straight drive for six by this Australian lad took almost everything from me.I intend in giving a million pounds to that shot of his.Just kidding!!The most perfect shot I've ever come across,with his foot perfectly balanced,catching up with the length followed by perfect timing.The 13 sixes hit by Brendon McCullum in the first encounter against Royal Challengers had not even one such shot,with all those being just a slog,and not to forget the poor bowling off Dravid's party.

And Jacob Oram showed hos New Zealand team mate that Chennai Super Kings aren't Royal Challengers to have only test players like Sunil Joshi and Rahul Dravid to name a few.3/32 from 4 overs was all the most economical when it came to the T20 format.Coool Super Kings...

Dhoni's Comment On Seniors:Just An Ego..

After the T20 world championship win at South Africa,followed by a maiden series win in Australia,it seems as though Dhoni has got wings that could let him even fly in the air.This was from the statement he made on the selection of junior players over the senior ones.

Was that the result what Dhoni wanted in the T20 match in Melbourne?Well,as I said,there was nothing to worry about in my earlier posts.Lets take the Commonwealth bank Series itself,which provoked Dhoni to make the statement.Some awesome performance that I can highlight is the bowling of Ishanth Sharma-to win the first encounter against the Aussies,Praveen Kumar-who won a match against each Sri Lanka as well as Australia,& finally M S Dhoni who played some decent knocks to help India through.

But,what about the rest?Robin Uttappa who had just two decent knocks,Yuvraj Singh-who had just one score of 50+,Piyush Chawla,Sreesanth and much more players who were hardly of any weight.

But,Sachin's knock that helped India win on both occasions.And for the information, how come the contributions of Sourav & Dravid being taken lightly just because the youngsters did a fair job?And is Dhoni ready to take the blame for the young team's debacle caused by his decisions?Well..if Dhoni's predictions come true,I would suggest him to be an astrologer rather than a cricketer!!What Dhoni??