Did Dhoni play a role in Yuvraj's axing?

NEW DELHI: The official version is that Yuvraj Singh has been dropped from the Indian ODI team for lack of performance. The selectors believe that the stylish middle-order batsman has been left out of the team because he hasn't been scoring consistently for Team India.

Yuvraj played well in the one-off T20 match against the Australians last year but struggled in the three-match ODIs series. He was then picked for the three-match ODI series against the West Indies and South Africa but couldn't make a mark.

Despite his poor performance, sources insisted that Yuvraj had been dropped because MS Dhoni didn't bat for his inclusion in the side. They said the Indian team management wanted Suresh Raina in the team for New Zealand, as they feel he could play an important role in the 2015 World Cup.

"It would be hard to believe that Dhoni wanted Yuvraj and the selectors ignored his wish," an insider indicated.

However, a BCCI official denied that Dhoni was behind Yuvraj's axing. It was a collective decision of the selectors to drop the 2011 World Cup hero from the team. "Raina is a useful all-rounder and there is no question of dropping him at this stage," the source added.