Nehra’s key to success is his discipline; want him to stay fit till the end of World T20: Dhoni

INDIAN PACER ASHISH NEHRA is enjoying his cricket like no other 36-year-old at the moment. The left armer has fought through several injuries and hardships in his career, but his passion to play at the highest level has brought him back to the Indian team.

For someone who was always being questioned for his fitness levels and consistency with the ball is now ironically leading the pace attack for the men in blue. After making his return to big-time cricket in Australia, Nehra has regularly been amongst the wickets.

Last night against Bangladesh too, Nehra was on song and ended up picking three wickets for his team. Speaking about the veteran’s comeback into international cricket, skipper MS Dhoni was full of praises for his strike bowler.

“Well, the beauty of Ashish Nehra is that he knows what he needs to do to be 100 percent (fit) on the field. One of the major concerns about him was his fitness; he had a tendency of breaking down. He had a fixed routine. It's like these are the things I need to do and whatever happens, he will follows that. That is the reason, he is so disciplined and is playing at the age of 36 or 37.”

However, the Indian skipper is also aware that Nehra needs to be handled carefully and monitored regularly. Dhoni also added that a fit Nehra is what the Indian team need going into the World T20 next month. 

"The format suits him. It will be difficult for him to play 50 overs as he needs to be on field for three to three and half hours. In this format, the kind of experience he has, it really counts. He effortlessly bowls at decent pace and can swing the ball. All of that helps us. That is the reason we want him to keep him fit till the end of World T20. We have a lot of games to play.”