5 Candidates to address India's No. 4 conundrum
While a flurry of positive results in varying conditions and against different opponents in recent times has placed Team India as one of the favorites to life the coveted World Cup trophy next year, the only gaping hole in the line-up is their No. 4 Batsman.
An honorable mention goes out to Dinesh Karthik here, who although is a very experienced cricketer, the only way he gets drafted into the team is if MS Dhoni unfortunately picks up an injury during the tournament.
Here are 5 candidates who could ideally be perfect to fill that void at two-down when these gladiators take center stage at the biggest tournament in the history of this beautiful sport:
#1 MS Dhoni
Everyone knows what happened on 2nd April 2011 when the-then skipper promoted himself ahead of Yuvraj Singh and played a pivotal role in India lifting the trophy for the 2nd time. While his power-hitting prowess has been on a wane in recent times, he's still a perfect no.4 due to his ability to rotate the strike and anchoring the innings, thereby making him more suited to this slot rather than the lower middle order.
He's been known to be a brilliant reader of the game and the Kohli-Dhoni combo at No. 3 and No. 4 could spell doom for bowlers all over the world because of their ability to keep the scorecard ticking. Dhoni might not be the finisher he once was, but his understanding of the game and his vast experience are 2 unparalleled assets to the team in their hour of need.