Virender Sehwag blasts media for 'twisting' comments

"I think MS Dhoni had a very strong team. And it's
always easier to win with such a strong team, just
as Australia were doing at one point,"Sehwag said. 

-Timesofindia
NEW DELHI: Hours after commenting on how "a strong Indian team" was the reason behind skipper MS Dhoni's remarkable success, opener Virender Sehwag took to Twitter, claiming that his comments had been misinterpreted and "twisted" by the media to make it "newsworthy".Sehwag first suggested - at the launch of former India stumper Saba Karim's academy on Friday - that a strong unit rather than the skipper's tactical skills had helped India win two World Cups (the 50-over and 20-over versions) under MS Dhoni.
"I think Dhoni had a very strong team. And it's always easier to win with such a strong team, just as Australia were doing at one point. Australia won three World Cups because they had a strong team and not just because of the captain," he said, blunt as ever, adding: "We believe we have a very strong team and that's why we won two World Cups, backed by MS Dhoni's captaincy."


Coming on the heels of the much-publicized 'rift' between Dhoni and the swashbuckling opening batsman - originating in India's disastrous tour of Australia - the comments immediately attracted media attention, following which Sehwag chose to issue a clarification. Sehwag tweeted, "Unfortunate when a comment is twisted to make it newsworthy. Gist of what I said: we had a great team and thus we have won two World Cups under MSD." He added: "MSD is a good captain and one of the most successful captains we have had. To imply anything else from my statement was irresponsible."


'Allow Tendulkar to pick and choose tours'
While the perceived flip-flop over Dhoni's contributions attracted the most attention, Sehwag also backed Sachin Tendulkar's decision to make himself unavailable for the upcoming ODI and T20 tour of Sri Lanka."Not only me but the entire country will miss him playing in Sri Lanka. Sachin is 39 now and one must consider that he needs rest and has to choose the series he wants to play (in). Hopefully, he will be back for the Tests this season."


Sehwag will be making a comeback into the ODI form but dismissed queries on his fitness status, saying: "I played the entire IPL and I bowled as well. The question about my fitness doesn't arise now. The ODI tour of Sri Lanka will also help me in preparing for the Twenty20 World Cup to be held there."On the travails of the India 'A' team in the Caribbean, Sehwag said, "Some do well on these kind of tours and some don't. That doesn't mean they are not good players. It (growth of the batsmen) will happen with exposure. It's up to them to rectify their mistakes on these tours and come back and keep performing in the domestic circuit."