Mahendra Singh Dhoni is spectacular!

[silentstriker]

i think in a years time he will become the best wkt batsman in the world.

Well, India have tours to West Indies, South Africa and the WC coming up, so we will find out soon enough. He is definatly not there yet.

But, he'd pretty much have to score a triple century, and average 60.00 to overtake Gilchrist . Although, at the end of the year, we may very well find out that he is the second best wicketkeeper-batsman in the world.

Gilchrist already scores at a 50+ average, which is absolutely phenomenal. He could easily keep his place as a specialist batsman, in any side. This is of course ignoring his keeping, which is solid if not spectacular.

 

[adharcric]

I just read Miandad's comment about Dhoni, he said that the impression that Dhoni is a slogger is wrong as he's very clever and correct batsmen.

The fact that Dhoni is third on the ICC table of batsmen speak volumes of his brilliance, in such a short time its near impossible to achieve so much.Dhoni is really a world class player and i think in a years time he will become the best wkt batsman in the world.

Yeah I'd agree, Dhoni isn't really a slogger. He just hits the ball incredibly hard when he goes after it and is a very powerful player. It's not like he can't defend or take singles. I'd say Dhoni is more like Symonds than Afridi. He doesn't try to hit everything far into the sky, he just plays his natural drives, cuts, pulls and occasional lofts and does it with tremendous power.

 

[adharcric]

Just take a look at the run-chase in the 5th odi. Dhoni and Yuvraj let the required run-rate climb to 8.5 per over because Pakistan was bowling well. They had confidence in their ability to bring it back, after all it's just a boundary an over and rotating the strike often. Of course, Dhoni made a mockery of that in the end with his massive sixes.

This shows that Dhoni is an intelligent batsman, not a slogger who would try to blast 'em out of the ground under any circumstances. Even Afridi has matured from a pure slogger to a more intelligent batsman, but he's not as crafty as Dhoni yet.

 

[alternative]

very true.. both yuvraj and dhoni have shown maturity.. they have proven that through out the series.. both played the ball on its merits.. and the bad ball got punished..
Dhoni aint a slogger, he is quite matured and has the confidence and temperment to match the situation..

 

[Mr Mxyzptlk]

Well, India have tours to West Indies, South Africa and the WC coming up, so we will find out soon enough. He is definatly not there yet.

But, he'd pretty much have to score a triple century, and average 60.00 to overtake Gilchrist . Although, at the end of the year, we may very well find out that he is the second best wicketkeeper-batsman in the world.

He'd also have to become a much better wicketkeeper. A wicketkeeper-batsman suggests that you're a quality wicketkeeper who can bat exceptionally. Kamral Akmal is the best wicketkeeper batsman in the world right now.

 

[alternative]

we can't take much away from the Kumar Sangakara.. he had a decent tour in australia, he actually place well on the bouncy wickets.. i would rate him slightly above akmal..

 

[Mr Mxyzptlk]

we can't take much away from the Kumar Sangakara.. he had a decent tour in australia, he actually place well on the bouncy wickets.. i would rate him slightly above akmal..

Akmal is a better wicketkeeper IMO and considering that he's also quite a good batsman, I consider him a better wicketkeeper-batsman than Sangakkara.

 

[DhonisOnslaught]

. Kamral Akmal is the best wicketkeeper batsman in the world right now.

Dhoni is miles ahead of Akmal, Akmal maybe a decent replacement for Moin Khan, but he's not in the league of Dhoni, who is a match winner and the best finisher in the game.

 

[adharcric]

Akmal might have good technique and temperament, but Dhoni has a bigger impact on the game. I know one can cite two brilliant innings against India, one match-saving and one match-winning, to show that I'm wrong about Akmal's impact ... but I rate Dhoni higher as a batsman. Keeping wise, Akmal is overrated and Dhoni is underrated ... Akmal is still better but I've seen him botch not-so-difficult chances lately and Dhoni has been quite agile and dependable behind the stumps of late.

 

[Mr Mxyzptlk]

Dhoni is miles ahead of Akmal, Akmal maybe a decent replacement for Moin Khan, but he's not in the league of Dhoni, who is a match winner and the best finisher in the game.

WICKETKEEPER-batsman. Not batting wicketkeeper.

 

[viktor]

Akmal might have good technique and temperament, but Dhoni has a bigger impact on the game. I know one can cite two brilliant innings against India, one match-saving and one match-winning, to show that I'm wrong about Akmal's impact ... but I rate Dhoni higher as a batsman. Keeping wise, Akmal is overrated and Dhoni is underrated ... Akmal is still better but I've seen him botch not-so-difficult chances lately and Dhoni has been quite agile and dependable behind the stumps of late.

Don't know about Akmal being over-rated, but Dhoni is definitely a better keeper than what he is made out to be.

 

[FaaipDeOiad]

WICKETKEEPER-batsman. Not batting wicketkeeper.

And why does Gilchrist not quality, exactly? Even if you don't think he's the best wicketkeeper in the world, he's certainly not a poor one by international standards, and it seems a bit bizarre to claim that Akmal (or Dhoni) are already better batsmen than a proven world class batsman like Gilchrist.

 

[Xuhaib]

Dhoni is miles ahead of Akmal, Akmal maybe a decent replacement for Moin Khan, but he's not in the league of Dhoni, who is a match winner and the best finisher in the game.

Dhoni is good but not miles ahead of Akmal as a wicket-keeper batsman. On a easy pitch Dhoni looks awsome but the test at Karachi clearly showed the difference in both guy's batting.

Dhoni is a match breaker who will be hard to stop on a good batting track but might struggle when there is something in the pitch on the other hand Akmal has a good technique which means that he can handle the moving ball more expertly then Dhoni.

 

[marc71178]

And why does Gilchrist not quality, exactly? Even if you don't think he's the best wicketkeeper in the world, he's certainly not a poor one by international standards, and it seems a bit bizarre to claim that Akmal (or Dhoni) are already better batsmen than a proven world class batsman like Gilchrist.

Dare one suggest that a return of 466 runs @ 25.89 from his last 12 Tests is why people are rating Akmal better?

 

[Mr Mxyzptlk]

And why does Gilchrist not quality, exactly?

Because I consider Akmal a better 'keeper and currently I have more faith in Akmal with the bat. Who's talking about any other than current form here?

 

[Armadillo]

I would say Akmal is the better test batsman, Dhoni is yet to prove himself in that field, this is going to big rivalry in years to come, without a doubt the future of wicketkeeping.

Akmal went through a rich vein of form in...January? When he scored 7 centuries or something stupid of the sort, I'll definately be watching Dhoni in the future though, who won't.

 

[FaaipDeOiad]

Dare one suggest that a return of 466 runs @ 25.89 from his last 12 Tests is why people are rating Akmal better?

Sure, Akmal is the most in-form keeper-batsman in the world right now, at least if you're only talking about test cricket (Gilchrist has 4 centuries in his last 15 ODI innings), but I gathered from the original statement that it wasn't about just form, as Liam said Akmal was the best keeper-batsman in the world right now, which seemed a bit more like a general statement.

Really, Gilchrist could have a good tour of South Africa and change that "last 12 tests" average pretty easily. Form is a pretty passing thing for class players, and Gilchrist's ODI form suggests that he's not simply past it with the bat.

And for what its worth, Gilchrist's keeping during the Australian summer was pretty much flawless. Definately the best he's kept in his entire career.

 

[chicane]

i think dhoni's keeping is shoddy.....hes just spectacular with the bat.

kamran akmal is good. gilchrist still the best. sangakkara second.

 

[kvemuri]

i think dhoni's keeping is shoddy.....hes just spectacular with the bat.

kamran akmal is good. gilchrist still the best. sangakkara second.

Dhoni needs to improve a some more to be included in the same ranks as Gilchrist, same goes for Akmal. Dhoni is more a destructive batsman and has a better hand eye co-ordination than Akman, but Akmal has a better technique and temperament than Dhoni does. Also Akmal has played more tests than Dhoni so Akmal has more experience at the longer version of the game, so give Dhoni time to improve. Both these guys are already showing a value add to their respective teams and are going to be bigger assets as the time goes by.

Coming to their comparision to Gilly, I think Gilly is miles ahead comparatively, he is far better a keeper than either and is more skillful batsman than either, Gilly has played the same way in Aus, Eng, WI, Ind, Pak, NZL, SA you name where and he has dazzled there, Dhoni and Akmal haven't tested the waters of Eng, Aus, NZL, WI etc. Unless and until they can prove their meettle there, I won't say they are comparable to Gilly yet. Also Sangakarra and Boucher, currently, in my opinion rank higher than either Dhoni or Akmal.

 

[viktor]

Dhoni needs to improve a some more to be included in the same ranks as Gilchrist, same goes for Akmal. Dhoni is more a destructive batsman and has a better hand eye co-ordination than Akman, but Akmal has a better technique and temperament than Dhoni does. Also Akmal has played more tests than Dhoni so Akmal has more experience at the longer version of the game, so give Dhoni time to improve. Both these guys are already showing a value add to their respective teams and are going to be bigger assets as the time goes by.

Coming to their comparision to Gilly, I think Gilly is miles ahead comparatively, he is far better a keeper than either and is more skillful batsman than either, Gilly has played the same way in Aus, Eng, WI, Ind, Pak, NZL, SA you name where and he has dazzled there, Dhoni and Akmal haven't tested the waters of Eng, Aus, NZL, WI etc. Unless and until they can prove their meettle there, I won't say they are comparable to Gilly yet. Also Sangakarra and Boucher, currently, in my opinion rank higher than either Dhoni or Akmal.

Temperament wise I think Dhoni is up there. Infact his temperament and intelligence might be what get him by in difficult batting conditions.