Chanchal Bhattacharya, the former personal coach of Mahendra Singh Dhoni, on Monday said the India captain maybe is unable to deliver results expected of him as skipper because of the prevailing atmosphere in the dressing room.
Bhattacharya said Dhoni has a lot of pressure on him as captain and he might be fighting it hard to adjust to the dressing room’s environment.
“I don’t know the inside story but we have seen Dhoni play and fight till the last over. If one’s mind is not at peace, then it is impossible to play,” Bhattacharya said.
“He is unable to deliver his best because of mental pressure and because of the dressing room’s environment as well as the media. I haven’t spoken to him but I feel the environment of the dressing room is bad,” he added.
He said that Dhoni has immense talent and will be in the side for some more time if his current form is taken into consideration.
Bhattacharya, however, said that the dressing room environment may have been the reason behind Dhoni’s recent remark suggesting that he was ready to step down as the skipper.
“It was for the first time that India lost so badly against Bangladesh. As far as Mahendra Singh Dhoni is concerned, he gave a statement yesterday (Sunday) that if the BCCI wants, he can play as a player. Whosoever be the captain, winning the game for the country is more important,” Bhattacharya told ANI in Ranchi.
“The way he is playing suggests that he will be in the game for some more time, but he may step down as the skipper,” he added.
Dhoni offered to step down after the side suffered their first-ever series defeat against Bangladesh on Sunday.
Bangladesh took an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match ODI series with a six-wicket win over the World Cup semifinalists in Dhaka.
