Press Trust of India
Kolkata, Oct 8: Having been comprehensively outplayed by South Africa in both the T20 internationals, India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni stated here Thursday that he would not prefer a lot of grass cover for the upcoming five-match ODI series against the Proteas
Asked at the post-match presentation ceremony as to what kind of pitches he would prefer during ODIs, Dhoni said: “We would like to play on the surface that is provided to us. But at the same time, we want to make the most of the home series. Don’t want a lot of grass cover. It will compound the difficulty for the spinners.”
The Indian skipper also pointed out that he expected an exciting ODI series dew permitting. “After September, dew always plays a crucial role for the side fielding second,” Dhoni pointed out.
Dhoni informed that that had the game been played here Thursday, there would have been three changes. Ajinkya Rahane would have opened the innings, Suresh Raina would have played at No. 3 and Stuart Binny and Amit Mishra would have come into the XI. “Sadly there was no game. You don’t want to come to a venue like Eden Gardens and then leave without playing,” the Indian skipper lamented.
Meanwhile South Africa T20 captain Faf du Plesis said the series win will give the visitors a lot of confidence going into the rest of the tour.
“Disappointing, the rain washed the game away,” he said. “We will take a lot of confidence going into the ODIs after the T20 series win. This has been a huge boost for us and winning any series in India is tough.”
