Pray for MS Dhoni's fitness till 2019 ICC World Cup, says Virender Sehwag

Courtesy: PTI

New Delhi: Virender Sehwag feels that Team India are yet to find a suitable replacement for Mahendra Singh Dhoni and the former skipper should be a part of 2019 ICC cricket World Cup squad.

"I don’t think anyone can replace Dhoni at this point of time. Rishabh Pant is good but he would also need time to replace him. But that can only happen after 2019. It’s then when we should think about Dhoni’s replacement. Till then let Pant gain experience," Sehwag said.

In Team India's ongoing limited overs series against hosts Sri Lanka, Dhoni proved twice that he is still the best finisher of the game.

"We should not worry about whether Dhoni is scoring runs or not. We should only pray that MS Dhoni is fit till 2019 World Cup. The experience that he has in the middle and the lower middle order, no one has that," said Sehwag.

"Like life, the beauty of sports is that no two periods are identical. You will have to deal with it. There are days when you make runs and there will be a dry spell. Like in business, every year you don’t make profits,” he said.

Sehwag is also against the idea of KL Rahul keeping the wickets in case Dhoni is dropped.

"I would never want a guy, who is not a natural ‘keeper. It’s not keeping 20 overs in Indian Premier League. During a 50-over match, one missed stumping or missed catch can change the course of the match. It’s not a risk worth taking," said Sehwag.

The swashbuckling openers also suggests that the core team should be set at least one year before the World Cup.

"The middle-order that would play in the World Cup along with the bowlers should be given enough opportunities, so by the time of World Cup, they should have played close to 100 ODIs each. They should be ready to handle each and every challenging situation thrown at them," he said.

"Experience always enables you to handle pressure better. They can then win you matches in crunch situations. If they are not given that many chances, they could be the weak link. Next three to six months, I hope that the core is set."