No cover sought for Dhoni as skipper enjoys soccer session

The Indian team management has not yet sought a cover for skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who sustained a thumb injury before the fourth ODI against England at Mohali, increasing the possibility of his playing in the final match here on Sunday.

In fact, the Indian skipper was seen actively participating in a soccer session at the picturesque stadium here dispelling doubts about his participation in the final one-dayer. While the English team took a break from their training session, a relaxed Indian side enjoyed their soccer session in the afternoon.

Dhoni has sustained injuries in the past during the training sessions but has shown enough grit to come out and lead the side admirably. There were doubts about the Indian captain's participation in the third one-dayer against Pakistan in New Delhi earlier this month and Dinesh Karthik was flown in as a cover. However, the skipper not only led the side but was also awarded man-of-the-match for his captaincy.

It was after a long time that the Indian players looked a happy bunch while playing their customary football match unlike some of the other times when it looked as if they are going through a routine drill.

Someone like Rohit Sharma, who tends to get lost easily when he goes through those prolonged bad patches, was seen enjoying the most and rightly so after his fine performance at the top of the order in Mohali.

Virat Kohli was hit by the football and he was out of action for a brief period before the match resumed again. On the cricketing front, the pitch is expected to help the batsmen and with the sun beating down, it can become conducive for strokeplay.

However, the open nature of the ground and the cool morning breeze will also keep the seamers like Bhuvneshwar Kumar interested on a strip that curator Sunil Chauhan termed as "sporting wicket."