MS Dhoni was expecting the question to come up a little later in the Press conference after he lost to Australia in the semi-final of the World Cup, but once it was thrown directly at him, he smiled and did what he often does when he is not in the mood of answering — speak a whole lot of gibberish which is deliberately aimed at not making any sense.
Asked what he had thought about his ODI career from now, he said: “You asked me about my future. It's up to you guys. The media should do a nice research on it, take a few days and my advice will be whatever you decide, right the complete opposite, that will be the fact. It's up to you guys,” he said.
He, however, was more direct at the post match presentation ceremony where he said: “I'm not sure about it. I'm 33, I'm still running, I'm still fit, but I'll have a year's time, maybe close to next year, during the T20 World Cup will be the time I would like to decide whether I'll continue till the 2019 World Cup or not,” he said.
About Thursday, he admitted Australia played better, pressure did India in, losing the toss had him worried, what he needed desperately was a good opening partnership and that 329 was a chaseable total. Excerpts from his media interaction:
MS, are you proud of what you've achieved with this team and where do you see your One-Day future from hereIJ
I thought that question would be answered later, but it's the first one. Even before the start of the tournament, when we played the tri-series, we had a lot of problems to deal with, the cricketing problems, the form of the players. To manage, we were here for close to over two months, and then we had another two months. All in all, it was a tough one for us. The Test matches didn't go our way, the Tri-Series didn't go our way, so it was important to have a good dressing room atmosphere, and all the members, including the support staff, they were just brilliant because if you have a good dressing room atmosphere it's slightly easier to come back into form. I felt everybody rose to the occasion, how the fast bowlers bowled throughout this tournament, how the spinners have done, learning from all their past experiences when we fell outside. I thought it was the reason all of that together sums up the kind of performance that we have given in this tournament. Disappointed we couldn't go into the Final, but only one team can win, and I felt they played better cricket on the day.
What would you say about the way Virat played todayIJ
He played a shot and it didn't pay off. It happens to a lot of batsmen. Once the opposition puts over 300 runs on board and once they have quality bowlers, at some point of time you have to take that risk and if it pays off, if it clicks, all of a sudden everything changes. He played a shot, it didn't pay off, that's it. About fitness, a few of them had a few niggles, but the whole batting unit was 100 per cent fit. Fast bowlers had a bit of niggle, but nothing that really stops them from playing.
Your legacy as an ODI player and skipperIJ
For me, it doesn't really matter. Every time I turn up, what's important is to do something special so that I can be part of or I can contribute to the win. What people think about me as a player or what I’ve done, it doesn't matter because I play for the enjoyment of the game, and I don't really have to do anything with the amount of runs I’ve scored. The day I pack my bag I pack it, and I'll be happy on my bike.
Johnson got 27 runs in 9 deliveries towards the end. Would it have made a difference if it was like 300IJ
The good thing is our batting lineup, they know how to chase 300. Our game plan didn't go really well in this game, but we’re one team that has done it quite often, so I don't think that extra 20 runs would’ve made a lot of difference.
You left it really late for the chase when you started to attack. What was the thinking behind thatIJ
Our lower order haven’t really been able to contribute, so if you start too early and if you lose a wicket, it's nothing really left in the game. You get out for 150 maybe. So you’ve to take that risk at the right time. Maybe it was a bit too late, but if mine and Ajinkya's (Rahane) partnership wouldn't have come at that time, we would have packed up for 140 or 150 runs.
What are your thoughts on New Zealand’s performance and is there a clear favourite in the FinalIJ
In the shorter format, it's all about that particular day, which team plays better cricket. One of the biggest things that the New Zealand team will have to deal with is the size of the field. In New Zealand you can get away with quite a few mistimed shots. But in Australia, you get a bit of reverse swing, and at the same time wickets where it's slightly two paced, especially if you talk about MCG. Australia have that advantage of knowing the wickets well, and have three left-arm fast bowlers in their armoury because that will certainly help them.
What do you think about the playing conditions for this World Cup and whether you'd like to see them changeIJ
It's my personal opinion I would like them to change. In the history of cricket we’ve not seen 200s; in three years' time you see four 200s being scored. A lot of people will say there are a lot of dot balls that are getting bowled because of that extra fielder inside. I would say have the option of having them outside, you can keep all 11 inside to stop all the dot deliveries. let's not make 50-over game like a T20. The essence of ODI cricket is how you bat from the 15th over onwards until maybe the 35th over. The first 10 and the last 10 don't matter. I feel the rules are harsh.
Through the tournament your fast bowlers have used the bouncer very well. In this match it didn't seem to come off so well. Was it because of the pitch or the Australians played it wellIJ
I think we got quite a few wickets. I don't know how many, but I think minimum three we got to bouncers… I feel we could’ve altered the length… As I said, we could’ve done something better, but it doesn't really matter now.
Are you getting a little sick of the sight of Steve Smith scoring centuries, and what would be your advice to New Zealand in the Final to get him cheaplyIJ
Different teams will have different strategies against him. I don't know what New Zealand's strategy will be because their set of bowlers is very different, so I think Brendon McCullum, he'll do good enough to have his own set of plans. (Daniel) Vettori's performance will be crucial because he's somebody in the middle overs who can really get wickets and isn’t someone that you can easily score off, play the big shots to.
How emotional is it to surrender the crown which you hadIJ
It's something that doesn't really belong to anyone. We took it from someone, so somebody took it from us. It's as simple as that. Had we played better cricket on this day, maybe we would’ve gone into the Final. That's how it is in any international sport — you’ve to be at your best. If not, the Cup gets shared.