Ravichandran Ashwin blames team, not MS Dhoni, for India’s series defeat to Bangladesh

DHAKA // Ravichandran Ashwin, the India off-spinner, on Tuesday defended MS Dhoni, the under-fire captain, who said he is willing to step aside as leader after their first one-day series defeat to Bangladesh.

Ashwin said Dhoni was not to blame for India’s embarrassing losses in the first two matches of the series and said “we failed as a group”.

India were on the end of a thumping six-wicket defeat on Sunday, which sealed the series for the hosts.

“He (Dhoni) is a legend of Indian cricket. He has done so much for the nation,” Ashwin said before the third and final match on Wednesday.

“You can’t blame him for the whole team’s performance. That’s not fair. We have failed as a group. We need to grow up as a group.”

Ashwin, Dhoni’s teammate at the Indian Premier League franchise, Chennai Super Kings, said the team was fully behind their captain.

“As far as I am concerned, it’s like an army. If you don’t go behind your leader then you are definitely going to get shot,” he said.

Dhoni, who turns 34 next month and is regarded as India’s best limited-overs player, has won a string of trophies for his country since taking the helm in 2007.

But the losses in Bangladesh again raised questions about his recent form as captain after India’s semi-final exit from the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand this year.

The wicketkeeper-batsman quit Test captaincy midway through the Australia tour in December and was replaced by batsman Virat Kohli before he retired from the game.

“If it is a justifiable thing that if you remove me and Indian cricket will start doing really well, and if I am the reason for all the bad that is happening to Indian cricket, definitely I would love to step away and play as a player,” Dhoni said after Sunday’s defeat.

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RESULT

Manchester United 1 Brighton and Hove Albion 0
Man United: Dunk (66' og)

Man of the Match: Shane Duffy (Brighton)

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Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer