The Hindu : Sport / Cricket : Bari, a fan of Dhoni

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Wednesday, Jul 02, 2008
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Bari, a fan of Dhoni

Karachi: The 1970s and 80s seemed to be the golden age of wicket-keeping, thanks to men like of Rodney Marsh, Syed Kirmani, Alan Knott and Bob Taylor. Pakistan’s Wasim Bari added his own share of allure to the job, with 201 catches and 27 stumpings in Tests.

Bari, a former chief selector or Pakistan and a legend in his land, praised fellow gloveman M.S. Dhoni’s skills. “He is exceptional. He can play purely as a batsman or as a wicket-keeper. He doesn’t jump at the ball while keeping and collects cleanly, moves well. He may not be in the same class as Syed Kirmani but he is good. He is not small built like the usual keepers, he is big, not because of weight but because of a bigger bone structure. Now he and Kumar Sangakkara are the best we have,” Bari told The Hindu.

Bari also praised Dhoni’s leadership skills. “He is a fine leader and has forged the team aggressively. He reads the game well… it helps that he is a wicket keeper,” Bari said.

He was of the opinion that Shoaib Malik ought to be more aggressive with his captaincy. “I wish he is more aggressive, I am not saying that he should pick up fights but he should be aggressive in his tactics and plans. He should also lead from the front with his performances,” Bari said.

The former selection committee chief also said that a fit Shoaib Akhtar and a chastened Mohammad Asif would be assets to the Pakistan team.

“A fit Shoaib Akhtar is a champion bowler, a match-winner and we need him. When I was playing, Pakistan had about eight match winners. That’s not the case today. As for Asif, well some players don’t mature fast and take time. It is up to us as fellow cricketers to help them when such issues happen,” Bari said. — Principal Correspondent

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