Team India head coach Ravi Shastri said on Friday he had seen Indian batting great Sachin Tendulkar get “angry at times” but not Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Shastri went on to say that Dhoni was “a once in 40 years player” and it was going to be very difficult to replace him once he bid adieu to the game.
The former Indian skipper had been heavily criticised for his 51 runs off 96 balls innings in the opening ODI at Sydney. However, the viewers witnessed a glimpse of the old Dhoni after he anchored India to a series win with his unbeaten knocks of 55 and 87 in the next two matches.
“He is a legend. He will go down as one of our great cricketers. I have never seen an individual so sound. I have seen Sachin at times get angry. Not this man,” Shastri was quoted as saying by Daily Telegraph.
“You can’t. Such players only come once in 30 or 40 years. That is what I tell Indians. Enjoy while it lasts. When he goes you will see a void that will be very hard to fill,” Shastri added.
Speaking about the young Rishabh Pant, who is touted to succeed Dhoni as a keeper-batsman, Shastri said he was hopeful that the Delhi cricketer would live up to the hype surrounding him.
“I would love to. He has the talent. His hero is MS. Every day he is on the phone to MS. I think during the Test series he must have spoken more to MS than anyone else,” Ravi Shastri said when former England captain Michael Vaughan asked if Pant could be Dhoni in the next 20 years.