Mumbai: India’s limited-overs skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni on Tuesday said that he is looking forward to the challenge of playing with a completely new set of players when he leads the side in the upcoming tour to Zimbabwe, which starts from June 11 in Harare.
In an effort to use the players in the team’s benefit, Dhoni admitted that he needs to quickly access the strengths and the weaknesses of his new teammates.
“I think it will be a very different experience, the reason being you keep playing almost with the same group of players. So, you almost know the role and the responsibility that each and everyone shares and what their strengths are. There are quite a few players, especially in this bilateral series with whom I will be playing for the first time. So, I have to quickly access what their strengths are and at the same time depending on the team’s composition, what is the best possible slot or best possible manner the individual can be utilised,” Dhoni told the media ahead of the team’s departure.
Talking about his new side, the 34-year-old insisted that his bowling departments looks really good at the moment, but admitted that sorting out right batting order would be a challenge for him.
“So, I think the bowling looks really good .In batting again, what we have to see are the slots that will be available for the particular individual. Overall, both bowling and batting department are looking good on the paper. You can say our bowling has a bit more exposure to international cricket than our batting,” he added.
Dhoni also reflected on the coach which will be suitable for the Indian side, insisting that he should understand the culture and the upbringing of the team.
“We keep playing and many of the international coaches have the problem that we play a lot. So, we have to choose the best option as per the availability. One of the most important things is that he should understand our culture. More than Hindi or English, he should understand our upbringing which will always be better with us,” affirmed Dhoni.
India will play their first of the three-match ODI series against Zimbabwe in Harare on June 11. (ANI)