Litmus test awaits India and Dhoni in 2nd ODI against South Africa

Indore Facing the toughest phase of his cricketing life an underfire Mahendra Singh Dhoni will seek to revive his career and change the fortunes of a dispirited Indian team when the hosts take on an unbeaten South Africa in the second cricket onedayer here tomorrowIndia are yet to taste victory since South Africas arrival in the country having lost two Twenty20 Internationals the third one was abandoned before suffering a close fiverun defeat in the first ODIIndian cricketers during a practice session on the eve of second ODI Pic PTIWith critics gunning for his head Dhoni in particular finds himself in very challenging situation The year 2015 has not been a particularly happy one for Dhoni after the semifinal loss in the World CupThe loss in the IPL final was followed by the humiliation in Bangladesh in the ODI series and the T20Is against Proteas proved to be yet another nocontest His own form has been patchy and Dhoni the batsman evidently does not strike fear in the hearts of bowlers anymoreIt seems Dhoni the ultimate finisher has lost somewhere In the first ODI in Kanpur it was an ideal platform for the Indian skipper to get back to his critics but he faltered in the botched chase With India needing 11 runs off the last over the stage was set for Dhoni to finish off as he has done many a times in the past but the Captain Cool seemed to have lost his bighitting skills and turned more into an accumulator During his 30ball 31 he struck just one boundaryWith the World T20 not too far away time seems to be running out for Dhoni the man once considered indispensable in limited overs formats Come tomorrow the spotlight solely would be on Dhoni and his leadership skills and the remaining four matches of the ODI series will definitely be a test of character for the Indian captainAs usual Indian batting lineup is a formidable one with opener Rohit Sharma in rollicking form After the sublime ton in the first T20I in Dharamsala the Mumbai batsman struck a delightful 150 in the lost cause in KanpurBut Rohits opening partner Shikhar Dhawans form is a cause of concern He would be looking for a bagful of runs after failing in the T20s and then the first ODI Returning to the side Ajinkya Rahane however proved his worth with a vital 60 in Kanpur and would be looking to carry forward his good formBut Dhonis heir apparent Virat Kohli would be hoping for runs and going by his lofty standards he would like to take on the challenge against tough opponents like the Proteas to stamp his class once againSerious questions marks are also on Suresh Raina and the abilities of Stuart Binny as an allrounder But the thing which will worry Dhoni the captain most is the performance of his bowlers and the absence of is go to man Ravichandran Ashwin who has been effectively ruled out of the series with a side strain suffered during the Kanpur matchThe pace duo of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and comeback man Umesh Yadav looked ordinary in front of AB de Villiers and Co while Binny as usual has failed to prove his worth with the ball as wellDe Villiers who powered South Africa past the 300run mark in Kanpur with a 73ball unbeaten 104 went hammer and tongs as Indian bowlers bled more than 100 runs in the last 10 overs in the first ODIThe only saving grace for Dhoni and Indian has been the spin duo of Ashwin and leggie Amit Mishra but with Ashwin now out of at least first three ODIs this department has also taken a severe beatingAshwins place in the playing eleven is likely to be replaced by veteran Harbhajan Singh who has been called into the ODI sideSouth Africa on the other hand are a confident lot and are eyeing their firstever ODI series win on Indian soil South African bowling attack looks ominous with the return of speedsters Morne Morkel and Dale Steyn who were rested in the shortest formatYoung Kagiso Rabada who impressed in the T20s proved he belongs to the big stage by keeping a cool head in defending the total in the final over in KanpurLegspinner Imran Tahir as usual has been De Villiers go to man in crunch situations The battling unit led by the dangerous De Villers looks more ominous than their bowling De Villiers has already marked his arrival with the smashing ton in Kanpur and his deputy Faf du Plesis too is not far behind scoring a vital 62JP Duminy is in cracking form so what if he failed in the first ODI And with the likes of Hashim Amla David Miller Quinton de Kock and Farhaan Behardien in the ranks the Indian bowlers are sure to have another tough day in officeBut going by records the Holkar Stadium here as been a happy hunting ground for the home team as they have won all their previous highscoring matches at this venue India have played three ODIs at the venue and have won all the three ODIs at this 27000 capacity stadium