I wasn't affected by 2008 selection meeting leak: RP Singh recalls when MS Dhoni backed him over Irfan Pathan

Updated May 11, 2020 | 15:13 IST

Recalling the 2008 incident, where MS Dhoni got into a disagreement with selectors for playing RP Singh in place of Irfan Pathan, the UP bowler said he wasn't much affected by the leak as Dhoni was unbiased.

RP Singh recalled the 2008 leak controversy where MS Dhoni got into a disagreement with the selectors. | Photo Credit: BCCL

Key Highlights

Indian cricket witnessed a big controversy in the year 2008

MS Dhoni backed RP Singh over Irfan Pathan and got into a disagreement with the selectors

What happened in the selection meeting was later leaked

Being the captain of the Indian cricket team has to be one of the toughest jobs in world cricket. While Indian cricket has seen several captains in the past, Mahendra Singh Dhoni has managed to make his unique identity in the cricketing spectrum. The selectors showed faith in Dhoni by appointing him as captain of the Men in Blue in 2007 despite several senior players being a part of the squad. One of the biggest talking points of Dhoni’s captaincy came in 2008 - where a decision he made during a selection meeting was leaked.

As per a report in 2008, Dhoni wasn’t in favour of the selectors’ decision to replace RP Singh with Irfan Pathan and even threatened to give up captaincy. Dhoni went on to play RP Singh in the next two matches.

Recalling the incident, Singh opined that Dhoni was unbiased when it came to picking the right players for his team and he wasn’t impacted by the leak.

"I don't think I was affected by the leak. The England series we are talking about, I didn't get a wicket in Indore. Obviously people think they will get 2 or 3 more chances. But it was not meant to be. Some get 5 chances, some get 10 chances the lucky ones,” RP told Sports Tak.

Like most of the Indian captains, Dhoni too had a certain set of players whom he backed during his captaincy. Despite being Dhoni’s good friend, RP opined he frequently spoke to the Ranchi superstar about the areas of improvement and that he threw his weight behind players whom he thought could execute his plans in a better manner.

"We [Dhoni and I] had a discussion about where I could improve, what I can do to get better. I know MS Dhoni. Friendship is a different thing, but leading the country is different altogether. At that moment, I think he pushed the ones who he thought were better. I think he pushed people whom he thought would follow the plans better,” Singh added.

One of the best left-arm swing bowlers to have played for India, Singh also agreed to the fact that he was dropped from the team as there was a decrease in his swing as well as speed.