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You replace Dhoni at your peril: Gary Kirsten

Former India coach Gary Kirsten says Men in Blue captain has World Cup performance left in him

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Former India coach Gary Kirsten of South Africa coaches a youngster at a clinic in Mumbai on Tuesday
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Gary Kirsten, the coach who guided India to their second World Cup triumph, has always been a vocal supporter of Mahendra Singh Dhoni. And, the South African continues to be so even when there are questions raised over the limited-overs captain's place in the one-day side, his batting position at No. 4 and if he has to hand over the reins to Virat Kohli even for the shorter versions.

"That is a question I get asked the most every time I come to India. My answer has not changed in three years. I will answer the same that I answered three years ago," Kirsten said at the Police Gymkhana here on Tuesday after taking a break from imparting specialised coaching to kids of Saldanha International Academy. The South African is here with his assistant coach Ryan Cook on a five-day coaching camp.

"MS Dhoni is definitely the best leader I have ever worked with. His record for Indian cricket for the last 9-10 years speaks for itself. He is up there with India's greatest captains and certainly produced trophies for India in his time.

"Just look at his ODI batting record as a finisher and it's unsurpassed in the world in terms of the position he bats at. If anyone is doubting his ability, they are making a grave mistake. He is a great player and all great players will continue to produce fantastic performances throughout their careers. It is exciting to see him do well and have success with the Indian team. I enjoyed working with him and I will continue wishing him well."

That was not enough. The 48-year-old former South Africa opener was asked if Dhoni should bat more often at No. 4. Kirsten, who has 286 international matches experience for the Proteas (101 in Tests and 185 in ODIs), said that the rotational batting order was in vogue during his time with the Indian team.

"Dhoni can bat in a lot of different positions. When I was with the Indian team, we encouraged rotational batting order where we batted according to the situation rather than say 'this is your batting position today'. MS was brilliant at that. He did not mind where he batted.

"I always liked him to bat when we needed about 100 runs to win because there is no one better in the world to win from that position. But he often liked to bat a little bit earlier so that he had more time at the wicket and help himself to a hundred. In my opinion, Dhoni can bat pretty much anywhere in the batting order."

Pressed more on the 35-year-old from Ranchi, Kirsten told the doubting Thomases: "You replace MS at your peril. One experience that I have had is that all great leaders have great performances until the end of their careers. If you are willing to let MS Dhoni go, you take the risk of doing that.

"He might have a potential World Cup performance left in him. There comes a time in every player where he's got to consider for himself if he should still be in the team or it's time to move on. I think we should leave that decision to him."

Kirsten took over as India coach from the 2007-08 tour of Australia with Anil Kumble as the captain. He was pleased that an Indian is currently guiding India's fortunes.

"One needs to understand the coaching space and what value you can add to a group of people," Kirsten said when asked what he thought of Kumble as the chief coach. "Every environment can be different. First of all, Anil is a great person, a great human being. He has got a fantastic value system. I worked a little bit with him when I started with the Indian team. He has been a great player with tremendous respect. He has got tremendous results, so he will naturally get respect from his players. It is nice to have an Indian as India coach and the choice of that person was very important. He has had immediate success and that's not surprising. I have no doubt that he has all the credentials. And, with him and Virat as leadership of the team, and MS obviously in the white ball format, hope they bring more success."

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