Under no pressure

Dhoni's deal with NDTV has made news already for the cricketer's views on work pressure.

Cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni purportedly watched The World This Week, a weekly international news programme presented by Prannoy Roy on Doordarshan in the 1990s, at the age of two.

On Sunday morning, NDTV, promoted by Roy, announced an "exclusive" one-year contract with the Indian team's wicketkeeper-batsman for interviews, views and special shows.

"We go back a long way," said Roy, who declined to divulge the monetary terms, merely saying that it was a "symbiotic relationship".

Both the parties carefully emphasised that Dhoni's focus will remain on cricket. Of late, India's cricketers' off-field revenue-generating activities have frequently been put under the scanner, especially on occasions when the team has lost.

"The priority in the contract is cricket. I have to do well... I will say 'no' to anything that affects my cricket," said Dhoni, fielding questions in a manner that suggested rigorous rehearsals.

Dhoni will also be attending all events, including press conferences, organised by Board of Control for Cricket in India, in spite of the "exclusive" nature of his contract.

Roy may have been glad to note that Dhoni's first statements from the NDTV platform "" made at the press conference "" were newsworthy.

He did not hesitate to contribute his own bits to the raging debate over burnout and rotation of players. "Yes, there's a lot of cricket and every cricketer wants to play the maximum matches possible. But, at the same time, every cricketer needs to have a break," he said.

In recent times, many Australian players, led by their skipper Ricky Ponting, have called for less cricket. Former India great Sunil Gavaskar, on the other hand, feels players should be ready to play 365 days a year for the country.

Dhoni presented a rotation policy as a solution to burnout. "When a rotation policy is there, there is no issue of burnout. We get enough rest in between matches to recharge our batteries. Look at Irfan Pathan. He's performed really well after having a short break, so it gives every player a chance to excel. Rotation allows other guys in the 14-15 member squad a chance to gain experience so that when the time comes, he can also excel."

He said he did not think rotation would lead to insecurity among players about their position in the team. "I don't think the players are insecure. This unit is playing well, we are gelling well, there's no set benchmark and there's a lot of faith in us."

One question on which Dhoni did fumble pertained to what pressure meant for him. "Pressure... pressure... hmmm, let me think."