Gautam Gambhir and MS Dhoni are the two names that strike in our minds for steering India to victory in the final of the 2001 ICC World Cup. The names of these two players will forever be etched together in fans’ memories.

The two have shared a rocky personal equation over the years. With Dhoni leading the Indian team during the better part of Gambhir’s career, there were several instances of reports emerging of tension between captain cool and the aggressive lad from Delhi.

Dhoni could be past his best but many still consider him to be one of the most valuable assets for Team India and back him to continue till the 2019 World Cup, but as far as Gambhir is concerned, he wants the former Indian captain to perform in order earn a place in the next showpiece event.

It is hard to say if Gambhir was being personal, but he didn’t hold back while giving his take on Dhoni’s standing in the current set-up of the Indian cricket team. Gambhir’s opinion is that Dhoni can’t keep playing in the team till whenever he wants to.

“The only way he can survive till 2019 World Cup is by keep on performing. That should be the criteria for everyone, irrespective of whether he is Dhoni or someone else. Okay, you have done something in the past but that’s passed. You can’t keep playing till you want to,” the Delhi cricketer was quoted in an interview.

The Delhi-lad admitted that Mahi has been instrumental in the Men in Blue’s success in the past but there are other players like Dinesh Karthik who probably deserve more than they are getting. “At the same time I believe someone like Dinesh Karthik has been a massive loss for us because whenever he got an opportunity, he did well. He could have been your backup wicket-keeping option as well, ” Gambhir added. 

In the ongoing ODI series between India and Sri Lanka, everyone saw quite a few big names like Yuvraj Singh, Ashwin, Jadeja being excluded from the squad, though some call it a rest while others termed it as rotation. Many even expected Dhoni to miss out on a place in the 15-man squad, the former Indian skipper managed to secure himself a spot.

Gambhir also questioned the absence of Yuvraj Singh. Gambhir also dismissed the notion that Yuvraj Singh was rested for the limited-overs leg of India’s ongoing tour of Sri Lanka.

“I don’t think ‘rest’ is the right word because he (Yuvraj) hasn’t played any cricket for quite a while and he would be wanting to play. If you want to see him at the World Cup, he should be given the maximum opportunity. Because, someone like Yuvraj, you want him in that flow, you want him in that rhythm. You can’t have someone like him playing in one series and resting thereafter. So, I feel that it’s difficult now for Yuvraj to make a comeback. Hopefully, he does because he is one of the greats of the game,” the veteran said.

Gambhir believes Yuvi was deliberately left out but hopes the stylish left-hander is in the scheme of things for the 2019 ICC World Cup.

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