Ajit Agarkar believes selectors have to scrutinise MS Dhoni's position in the team

Dhoni's limited overs form has waned recently

Former India medium-fast bowler Ajit Agarkar believed that it was high time the Indian national team selectors observed limited overs captain MS Dhoni's performances more closely and come to a decision on his role in the team. Agarkar felt that Dhoni should not be picked just because he is the captain and because he performed for the Indian squad in the past.

Agarkar was speaking to ESPNCricinfo ahead of the India-South Africa ODI series. Dhoni has faced a dip in form in the limited-overs format in the recent past after retiring from Test cricket. Agarkar was of the opinion that Virat Kohli's performances as a Test captain need to be taken into consideration and believed that at the end of the South Africa series a call should be made on Dhoni's future.

“He has been a great player for India, but you don't want him to become a liability for the team. And he needs to perform a lot better than he has [been]. Just because he has done it over the years, doesn't mean it's okay for him to fail,” Agarkar said.

The former Indian bowler was particularly critical of Dhoni's decision to promote himself up the order to No. 4. Agarkar felt that by pushing himself up the order Dhoni was ruining opportunities for other talented players.

“Four years is a long time, but for Dhoni, towards the end of his career, to put himself up, I'm not sure about it. You can understand if there are batsmen who can't bat three and four. But there is Ajinkya Rahane, who has been one of your best players in Test cricket and I don't think he can bat lower than four in ODIs yet, unless he changes his game over his career,” Agarkar observed.

The 37-year-old felt that Dhoni is best at handling the pressure, which comes with playing at the crucial position of No. 6. He also spoke about how Dhoni selects and uses bowlers in the shorter format, telling that Dhoni needs to pick the right bowlers with pace. He was happy about the presence of fast bowler Umesh Yadav which might prove vital for India in the upcoming five-match ODI series.

“Dhoni keeps saying you don't need to be a fast bowler, you need to be a good bowler, but it has been shown in T20s, you need bowlers with quality. They (fast bowlers) can and will have bad days in the shorter format. And that's where I think the selectors need to almost put their foot down at times with M.S. Dhoni. He is, at times, way too practical, which doesn't work for the team anymore,” he said.

According to Agarkar, the selectors will have a lot of decisions to make regarding the future of the Indian limited overs team at the end of the 72-day long series against South Africa.