Prasad also threw information on whether or not Dhoni will be considered as the home series against South Africa and Bangladesh.

Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni might be in the final lap of his cricketing profession, but the experienced campaigner remains the best wicket-keeper in the country, as per chief selector MSK Prasad. Dhoni, who opted outside of the West Indies tour, to work in the Indian army also extends to feature in any discussion around Indian cricket, and there is a great advantage in what the future is for the wicket-keeper batsman.

In an interview with PTI, MSK Prasad refuted the theory which suggested that MS Dhoni’s presence in the Indian team hurt the balance of the side.

“Had we acquired the (World Cup) semi-final (against New Zealand), especially after the failure we had at the top of the order, then the injuries that Jadeja and Mahendra Singh Dhoni played would have been identified as one of the best knocks ever,” Prasad said.

The chief selector also said that the former skipper remains the best wicket-keeper and finisher in the game in the shorter formats and the other younger players are work in progress.

“I can tell this that till today, MS is the fittest glovemen and finisher in India in the shorter formats. The others are still work in process. MS was a big force to this team in the World Cup both as a batsman and keeper, apart from sharing his vast experience with the team and captain while taking on-field decisions,” Prasad further added.

So after the sabbatical, will the selectors include Dhoni for the home series against South Africa and Bangladesh? As per the chief selector, the communication is pretty clear and that they are now looking to give Rishabh Pant as many opportunities as possible to groom him for the future.

“I have very clearly told post the selection of the Indian team against West Indies, that we have a plan post World Cup to give as many opportunities as possible to Rishabh and groom him so that he can grow in confidence and perform as per the requirements of the team,” Prasad said.