Suresh Raina’s super form will help his captaincy: Coach Hans

Suresh Raina's super form will help his captaincy: Coach Hans

Suresh Raina has been in prolific form in the Indian Premier League (IPL) IV. With 430 runs under his belt, the southpaw is the leading run-scorer for the Chennai Super Kings, ahead of the likes of Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Michael Hussey.

Suresh Raina

Yesterday, he was handed over the responsibility of leading the Indian team in West Indies for the five-match ODI series and one T20 match after stand-in skipper Gautam Gambhir was ruled out because of a shoulder injury sustained during the World Cup final and aggravated during the IPL.

Rajinder Hans

However, Raina's former state coach Rajinder Singh Hans reckoned the Uttar Pradesh cricketer will do well in his second stint as captain. "I am confident Raina will do well in the West Indies. He has been in superb form in the IPL and that will reflect in his captaincy as well. We could see in Gambhir's case.

"Gambhir did a splendid job captaining Kolkata Knight Riders after a good performance in the World Cup. I am sure Raina must have learnt some tricks about captaincy being in the company of Dhoni at CSK and in the Indian team," Hans told MiD DAY yesterday.

His first shot at captaincy was a forgettable one after India failed to qualify for the final in the 2009-10 triangular series featuring Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka after losing three and winning only one game. "A captain is as good as his team. The team that he has got now is more experience. I am confident that Raina will do well," he said. Hans hailed Raina's appointment as the "best" choice. "Who else could have led after Gambhir was ruled out? It is a good decision to appoint Raina," he added.