Defiant Dhoni

Under-fire after the first ODI series loss to Bangladesh, an agitated Mahendra Singh Dhoni has lashed out at critics saying that if he is the reason for all the bad happening to Indian cricket then he would "love to step away" from captaincy and contribute as a player.

"I am always the one who is responsible for anything bad that happens in Indian cricket. Everything that happens is because of me. Even the Bangladesh media is smiling," Dhoni gave a tongue-in-cheek reply to a question at the post-match press conference after India suffered the their first ever series defeat against Bangladesh.

When the question was asked differently about how long he would continue as captain, he made it clear that he would continue but not before taking a dig at the scribe."I am really enjoying my cricket. But when the earlier question was asked, I knew this question one was coming. These questions always keep popping.

The media loves me. If it is justifiable if you remove me and the Indian cricket will start doing well, and if I am the reason for all the bad that's happening to Indian cricket, definitely I would love to step away and play as a player. "It doesn't really matter, who is the captain because I was never really in line to become the captain. It was a job or responsibility for me. They want to take it away from me, I am fine," he said.

Coach should not be appointed in a hurried manner: DhoniInsisting that there are enough people in the support staff to take care of players, India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has said it is fine if the coach's position remains vacant for some time rather than appointing "anybody" to fill in.The coach's position has been a hot topic of discussion post Duncan Fletcher's exit after the World Cup and Dhoni insisted that the Zimbabwean's contribution was invaluable to Indian cricket.

"At least indirectly you are saying you are missing Duncan Fletcher," Dhoni shot back when asked about the team's losses in relation to the coach's job lying vacant in the post-match conference."I felt he was one guy who was never really appreciated by the media. He did all the hard work. He was with the team for a long time. He went on really tough tours but I don't think we should blame the support staff. Ultimately it is the individuals that go out and adapt and do what is required. I don't think it is the support staff.

"If you are indirectly hinting that we need a coach and all that, we have enough people in the support staff to take care of us. And even if the position of the coach is vacant for some time, it is okay. Don't put just anybody there just because the post is vacant. Then it will have a bad impact in the long run. It takes time to make these decisions, and our team generally doesn't have that time because we keep playing non-stop," he added.

India were outplayed in virtually every department in the first two ODIs against Bangladesh, but Dhoni defended the squad members. "This is the best lot of players we have," Dhoni said."What we have to think about is, if we are playing in the subcontinent whether we want to go in with the extra spinner, whether we really want fast bowlers who bowl quick but are not good with line and length. At times we have seen they can really go for runs.

"If you see Bhuvi (Bhuvneshwar Kumar), he is not exceptionally quick but even when the batsmen are scoring fast he gets away with it. The only problem is, if he doesn't take wickets the other bowlers are not smart enough to get away with the kind of bowling they do. Overall you have to see what is the best balance and accordingly you move forward," he added.

Dhoni, who made a valiant 47 in India's six-wicket loss on Sunday, promoted himself to number four in the batting order but failed to accelerate when wickets fell in a heap at the end of the innings. The wicketkeeper-batsman though hinted that the move can be a long-term one.

"The whole idea was for me to go up and play more freely. The last four-five years, I have batted at 6, and there is always some kind of pressure other so I have not been able to bat freely. I wanted to get set and bat freely, but when I got set we lost wickets. Then we had to build some kind of partnership before we could go after the bowlers, then again we lost a couple of wickets. It was not really possible," he said.

Often accused of persisting with all- rounder Ravindra Jadeja, who scored 19 at No.7 and failed to bag a wicket in his 7 overs, Dhoni not only defended his Chennai Super Kings teammate but also gave justification for his preferred selection."We use every bowler according to his potential. I don't like to bowl him in the first 10, but after that he has bowled for us consistently, in the second Powerplay and even in the slog.

"I feel it is very difficult for someone like him to justify his selection because more often than not they don't get to bat. The only decent chance you get is when you are four-five down in 20 overs," he said. "To always come in an international game and expect an individual to score a fifty is not really possible, so it is a difficult one. Also, our top order has done really well so we haven't tested the bottom order.

You can say these two matches our lower order was tested. From bowling point of view, in between he was up and down, but later on, during the World Cup he bowled well and after that here he is bowling well," he added.