We Are Moving On, MS Dhoni Endorses Our View: MSK Prasad, Chief Selector

The Indian squad for the upcoming series against Bangladesh, which involved three Twenty20 Internationals and two Tests, included some new faces. Shivam Dube and Sanju Samson were included in the Twenty20 side along with Rishabh Pant. In the Test matches, Shubman Gill continued to be in the India side while Shahbaz Nadeem was left out. However, there was once again some disappointment from Indian cricket fans that MS Dhoni, the former India cricket team skipper, was left out of the Twenty20 International side. Dhoni has been on a sabbatical ever since India were eliminated from the semi-final of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 by New Zealand in Manchester. 

Speaking about the selection of the team, chief selector MSK Prasad cleared the air and said they had moved on ever since the World Cup and added that backing youngsters was the priorty. This had gotten endorsement from Dhoni itself. "We are moving on, we are very clear. Post World Cup we have been clear. We started backing (Rishabh) Pant and wanted to see him do well. He may not have had the best of matches but we are clear, we are focusing on him only. We're looking at younger options after the World Cup, so you can understand our thought process. We definitely had a chat with Dhoni and he also endorses our view of backing youngsters," Prasad said. 

Dhoni has missed the series against West Indies, South Africa and now Bangladesh ever since the World Cup. According to a report in the Indian Express, Dhoni might start playing for India in January and the first assignment could be the three-match Twenty20 International series against Sri Lanka followed by a big tour to New Zealand. 

"He has started working on his fitness by training at the gym. He also plays badminton, tennis and billiards at the venue. They all are part of his preparations. He might start playing competitive cricket from January which means he will not be a part of the Jharkhand team for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy," a source at the JSCA stadium in Ranchi told the Indian Express.

Also Read | MS Dhoni Vists Indian Dressing Room In Ranchi After South Africa Whitewash

India's series against Bangladesh will begin on November 3 at the Arun Jaitley stadium in Delhi and it will be followed by two more games in Rajkot and Nagpur. The three T20Is will be followed by two Tests in Indore and Kolkata which will be part of the ICC World Test Championships.

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