Dhoni wary of Tigers

MAHENDRA SINGH DHONI

India's cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni yesterday said Bangladesh are a good side and can beat any team on their day.
Talking to reporters on the evening before their departure for Dhaka, he said the presence of Bangladesh gives the tri-nation ODI series a 'tougher look'.
"It will be exciting. We are hoping this will be a continuity of the last series we played [against Sri Lanka]. Bangladesh are a good side and can beat any side on their day. We have to be fully prepared," said the wicketkeeper-batsman.
Admitting his side was a bit weak in bowling and fielding, Dhoni said that India missed specialised bowling and fielding coaches.
Flagging his concerns over some aspects of the bowling in the 'death' overs, he said, "It's a bit of a concern right now. In death overs, we are still struggling a bit but there's some improvement. We are on a low right now but I think it will only be a matter of time before we get it right."
About fielding, Dhoni said specialist fielding consultant of the team Mike Young of Australia would not be available for the Bangladesh tour and the team would have to take forward whatever he taught them during his brief stint during the T20 and one-day series against Sri Lanka recently.
"Fielding is one aspect of the game that is important whatever the format of the game is. We dropped quite a few catches in the last series. We will try to rectify that.
"Whatever good fielders we have, we will try to make them the best in the world because it really helps especially in the middle overs with four good fielders inside the circle who can save the singles," the Indian captain said.
India's bowling coach Venkatesh Prasad and fielding coach Robin Singh were sacked in October last year after the country's poor show in the Twenty20 World Cup and Champions Trophy, both in South Africa.
The Indian skipper said team coach Gary Kirsten has had his plate full as he is looking at several aspects and it always helps when there are separate bowling and field coaches.
Dhoni said although the side will miss Sachin Tendulkar, who has opted out to get some rest, it is important to give the master batsman a break.
"We will miss Sachin. Whether you play Bangladesh or any other team, you want him in the dressing room. But at the same time, it's important to give him rest. He's been playing for the last twenty years," Dhoni said.
He also praised the return of Rohit Sharma to the Indian team after he had been ignored on return from the West Indies tour in July and described the Mumbai batsman as a very talented player who needed to be given a fixed slot in the batting order.
"As far as Rohit is concerned, he's one of the most talented cricketers we now have. We were not really able to give him a specific position in the side. He should be given a run of five or ten games to build a space."