Dhoni sure 'Brand IPL' can survive on its own

Published>Wed, Apr 28 10 03:08 PM

Having emerged victorious in the Indian Premier League (IPL), Chennai Super Kings' (CSK) skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni is hoping that the controversies engulfing the IPL will be sorted out before the start of the cash-rich tournament's fourth edition.

Talking to a television channel hours before leaving for the West Indies to lead India in the upcoming Twenty20 World Cup starting on April 30, Dhoni said it was up to the authorities to look into the various allegations that had been levelled against Lalit Modi in the past few weeks and take a call on the situation.

"Lalit was part of the IPL for three seasons. Quite a few allegations have surfaced. It's up to the authorities to see what has happened. They will come up with something that's good for everyone. We have one year before the start of the next IPL, let's hope for the best," he said.

Commenting on whether the IPL could survive on its own, Dhoni said: "Yes, the IPL as a brand can survive on its own. But you have to come up with some innovative ideas every time to make it better. Not one individual, but a few brains will have to work together to pull off sensational ideas." Dhoni feels the game should be played in the right spirit and anybody involved in match-fixing should be severely punished.

"Match-fixing is the worst allegation possible against a cricketer. Anyone involved in it should be punished. Cricket should remain clean," he said.

Though known to speak his heart out, Dhoni played it safe when asked to comment on the role that vaastu has played in Chennai Super King matches.

Dhoni, who has reportedly been a little irked about having to bow to planetary configurations while making cricketing decisions, said: "Srinivasan's vaastu has been good. There is nothing bad about it. Every franchisee did such little things to help their team come on top. It is subtle. At the end of the day, most cricketers are superstitious." Dhoni also counted meeting the Dalai Lama in Dharamsala as a "very special" moment.

"Maybe we won the final because of the Dalai Lama's blessings. The team also played well, but we used only 70 per cent of our potential," he said.

Coming back to the hectic scheduling of the IPL, Dhoni refused to participate in the debate "whether playing in the IPL had tired the team." "If we go and do well, we will say the IPL helped us. But if we don't, we will say the IPL was tiring for us. So I don't want to get into the debate," he said.

Reproduced From Mail Today. Copyright 2010. MTNPL. All rights reserved.

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