Dhoni Will Not Play Vijay Hazare Trophy for Home State Jharkhand

Former Indian cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni is one such player who is not seen playing much for his home state Jharkhand in the domestic circuit.

Cricket news: Dhoni’s recent form with the bat is not good and has gone down considerably

This year too there will be no changes as he has opted not to play in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, although he had featured in all the six games for his home state in 2017. However Dhoni might return for Jharkhand during the knockout stage which will begin from October 14.

Dhoni does not have much burden on his shoulders as he plays only ODIs and T20Is in international cricket. He played in the limited overs format against England and his next international assignment came months apart in the form of Asia Cup.

However despite having so much time in hand and without the worry of fatigue, he has decided against playing in the domestic limited-overs cricket. Since Asia Cup, Jharkhand has played many games but Dhoni was not a part of it in any of them.

Many people think that Dhoni should have participated in the domestic circuit as the ageing wicketkeeper-batsman needs to find his lost touch with the blade.

He has become considerably slow in recent times and in the Asia Cup, he scored just 77 from 124 balls and did not even hit a six, which is different from the version of Dhoni everyone once knew.

Although he is still India’s first choice wicketkeeper, but a poor performance in the five-match ODI series against the Windies would give him a struggle to make the playing XI in the 2019 World Cup.

However the administrators of the Jharkhand board sees nothing wrong with the decision of the senior cricketer.

The secretary of Jharkhand Cricket Association, Debasish Chakraborty, told Mumbai Mirror, “Dhoni has been training with the team since September and has been involved in all aspects of the game. He has been playing the role of mentor. It hardly matters if a player of his stature takes part in the Vijay Hazare Trophy.”