MS Dhoni was close to losing the Indian captaincy, but the selectors did not go ahead with his removal, just weeks before the 2015 Cricket World Cup.

Patil further added that apart from Dhoni’s captaincy, the selection committee had also discussed Dhoni’s waning powers as a finisher.

Considered one of the greatest players to grace the one-day game, Dhoni failed to get India over the finishing line on a number of occasions in recent times.

Speaking to ABP Majha, the former Indian cricketer said: “We had a brief discussion about it (removing Dhoni from captaincy) on a few occasions. We wanted to experiment by handing the baton (to somebody) but we thought the time was not right with World Cup (2015) round the corner.

“There was discussion about his one-day captaincy, there were discussions on his finishing. We felt that a new captain should be given some time to set things right. Keeping that in mind in the World Cup, we had gone with Dhoni.”

Patil believes that Virat Kohli took over the Test captaincy at the right time, but refused to comment on whether the 27-year-old should lead the one-day team as well.

“I believe Virat got the captaincy at the right time. Virat can lead the team in shorter formats as well but that decision rests with the new selection committee,” Patil added.

DHONI’S TEST RETIREMENT

Patil also spoke about Dhoni’s sudden retirement from Test cricket in the middle of the Test series against Australia in 2014.

India had already lost the series 2-0 with one Test remaining, but Patil insisted that the Indian team wasn’t a sinking ship when Dhoni decided to quit.

“It was a very tough series. I won’t say Dhoni was captain of a sinking ship but things quite didn’t move in our favour. And in this backdrop, one of your senior players decides to retire. That was shocking but at the end of the day, it was his (Dhoni’s) personal decision,” he said.