We all know by now how amazingly Virat Kohli and his team of boys ended India’s overseas winning drought in test matches.

Apart from that, the records being broken, the sweet victory on Sri Lankan soil after 22 years is all going to be a part of cherished memories for years to come. It is not every day that a team full of such youngsters and players who are in and out of the team come together as a unit and give a stunning performance like this.

What exactly happened here? What changed?

There will be a detailed analysis obviously and the team management is going to find out what actually worked so that the same formula can be repeated in future as well. Next test match series is with South Africa and that will be the real challenge. But let’s first focus on how things have worked out at the moment and have that somehow made M S Dhoni irrelevant to the team?

First of all, it is all about Virat Kohli’s persona, charisma and the aggressiveness that has rubbed on his team members. Most of them are around his age and somehow can relate to his body language as well as mental attitude. The hunger for winning a match has somehow been clearly visible. Instead of being passive and trying to avoid losing a match, the players seemed in a mindset to go out and conquer the world! The fear of losing is out and passion for winning is in! Whether it is Ishant Sharma who bowled his heart out or Amit Mishra’s come back with such a beautiful spell or Ashwin’s phenomenal performance, the credit goes to them as much as to their captain Kohli who has been able to support them and give them the freedom to give their best.

With Dhoni, the team looked jaded, tired and in a reclusive mode even before the match started. It used to look as if they were touring to draw the series or to save their face, instead of showing the mindset to win. Also, Dhoni’s tactics in a test-match usually looked defensive instead of attacking or aggressive, the way he acts in a one-day match or T20!

It is just one series and the jury is still out whether the same set of boys can repeat this feat against stronger and tougher teams like South Africa, England and Australia, but the change is in the air. Dhoni is definitely an amazing captain and player in one-dayers, but the kind of change Virat is bringing in, would it be possible for the boys to perform under two different captains in two different formats of the game? Would they be able to give their best in one-days the way they performed in test matches? How would the team composition change under different captains?

All these questions will pose a challenge for Indian cricket per se and it would be interesting to see how Dhoni copes up with the changed dressing room! We still need Dhoni, but going by the trends, soon he may not be missed much!

Better days are ahead, for sure!

The post Should M S Dhoni Retire Now? appeared first on Youngisthan.in.

The 2015 ICC World Cup is scheduled to start in nine days and the Indian Cricket Team is facing a major dilemma.

Four members out of the 15-man squad are unfit.

The Indian squad for 2015 ICC World Cup

On any other day, this would bother the fans, but this time around, they might actually be enjoying Team India’s misery. Speculations are rife that Yuvraj Could Be Included In Team Indian Squad.

Bhuvaneshwar Kumar, Ishant Sharma, Rohit Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja are the four unfit players. This clearly spells trouble to the already struggling Indian bowling line up.

Initially when it was announced that Yuvraj would be left out of the World Cup squad, it meant that India were one batsman short and losing out on a fifth bowler. However, with concerns surrounding injuries, Yuvraj’s inclusion could pay off.

The swashbuckling southpaw has been in outstanding form scoring three back-to-back centuries in the Ranji Trophy tournament for Punjab. This might force the selection committee to make a U-turn on its earlier decision of excluding the Punjab lad.

Yuvraj Singh could make a grand entry

The 33-year-old batsman showed his calibre in the 2011 ICC World Cup. His performance with the bat and ball won Team India the tournament, making them a two-time Wold Cup holder.

Other than Yuvraj Singh, Murali Vijay might get a call to the Indian team, too, in case Rohit Sharma is deemed unfit. Vijay was seen in sensational form during the recently concluded Test series against Australia.

Murali Vijay could come in for Rohit Sharma

Ishant Sharma, who is recovering from ankle injury, could be left out of the squad and be replaced by either Mohit Sharma or Dhawal Kulkarni.

Yuvraj, particularly, has received massive support from fans not only in India, but in different parts of the world. His #LoutegaYuvraj trend might see the day of light again with this news reaching his fans.

The post Yuvraj Singh Could Actually Make It To The 2015 World Cup Squad…Here’s How appeared first on Youngisthan.in.