JOIN USBooing doesn't surprise Dhoni
It might be a twist of fate that they had to jeer their own team very soon after seeing Men in Blue dishing out another inglorious performance against South Africa at Trent Bridge.
It might have been a strange situation for them considering the adulations they have been experiencing over the last two years. Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni said he would have been surprised if the crowd did not boo them.
“It’s not the first time such a thing is happening to me or the Indian cricket team. Hamara antim sanskar bhi ho gaya hai after 2007 World Cup. (Our funeral had taken place after the 2007 World Cup). We were also booed while playing a Test match against England. We are not feeling bad about it. It shows the level of expectations people have from us,” Dhoni said. “When expectation level is so high, these are the kind of reactions you get. If you don’t want to get that reaction, then you have to win all the games which is not possible. If they did not boo us, we would have thought, there is something unusual,” he added.
Dhoni continued to differ with coach Gary Kirsten on fatigue factor affecting India’s campaign in the World Twenty20. A day after Kirsten told the media that fatigue factor was an issue, Dhoni asserted on Tuesday night that fatigue has not affected Indian cricketers.
“One thing is for sure that we are out of form. When it comes to preparation, we played so many games in IPL and we had one week rest before coming here. So we can’t exactly say we were tired and that’s why we did not perform well. In a 20-over game how tired can you be? You can work throughout the year and still play a tournament like this. So, I don’t know if fatigue was the reason,” Dhoni said.
“(But) We were not 100% on the field. That’s an honest remark by me. Personally, I never thought I was too tired. It was not at the same stage where I opted out before the Sri Lankan series.”
“I was not even close to it. It can be different for fast bowlers and other batsmen. I don’t think it’s an appropriate reason that we can give. It’s just like we are giving the burden to someone else.”