Dhoni, who missed the BCCI contract, could still be part of India’s World T20 team

Mahendra Singh Dhoni has been easily the most enigmatic cricketer that India has produced. The man from Ranchi is a master at playing his cards close to his chest and even at the age of 38, Dhoni oozes confidence. He has kept his cool as he has done throughout his 15-year international career while fending off the rare questions that he had to face regarding his future in India colours ever since the Men in Blue lost to New Zealand in the semifinals of the ICC World Cup last July. “January tak mat pucho’’ (Don’t ask till January) was Dhoni’s answer to the speculation over his plans.

And on Thursday, January 16, the former Indian captain started practising with the Jharkhand Ranji team just as the experts were about to write his epitaph after the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) left him out of the central contracts list! It was typical Dhoni. He loves to keep everyone guessing and it will be foolhardy to think that his India career is over.

Dhoni has two big factors going his way if he is keen on making a comeback to the Indian team. First and foremost he has the backing of the team management. Captain Virat Kohli and head coach Ravi Shastri are ready to welcome him back to the Indian dressing room. Kohli has always relied on Dhoni’s inputs and the skipper would love to have him on his side when India begin their quest to regain the ICC World Twenty20 title in Australia later this year. The inability to win an ICC title is clearly at the back of Kohli’s mind.

The second plus point for Dhoni is that Rishabh Pant has failed to cement his place as the wicketkeeper-batsman. The youngster’s batting has been inconsistent to say the least and his work behind the stumps leaves a lot to be desired.

Indeed Shastri was spot on when he remarked that Dhoni has a good chance of boarding the flight to Australia if he has a decent Indian Premier League (IPL) season. It is safe to assume that Dhoni is also eyeing the IPL to find out where exactly he stands and make a call after the end of the competition. He would have had a break of more than eight months by the time the IPL starts.

Dhoni’s glovework remains razor-sharp and he is steady with the bat. He could hold his end up and play the occasional big shot. But he is not the Dhoni of the old and the Indian think tank knows it too well.

Though the outgoing national selection committee chairman M S K Prasad has said that his panel has moved on from Dhoni, the truth is nothing has changed. It all boils down to how Dhoni fares in the IPL for Chennai Super Kings and whether he can match his own expectations.