MELBOURNE: No one is more committed to Indian cricket than Mahendra Singh Dhoni and batting at number five is the ideal spot for him, said Virat Kohli in stout defence of the former captain.

Dhoni faced criticism for slow batting in the ODI series-opener in Sydney before redeeming his pride and reputation with match-winning contributions in the Adelaide and Melbourne ODIs.

READ ALSO: I'm ready to bat at any position, says MS Dhoni

Acknowledging Dhoni's contribution in the historic series-triumph in Australia, Kohli defended the former captain saying he should be allowed breathing space.

READ ALSO: Dhoni powers India to first-ever bilateral ODI series win in Australia

"I think firstly as a team we are very happy for Dhoni that he is amongst the runs, because it is very important to get runs under your belt to get that rhythm and confidence back. Especially when you have not been playing so much international cricket," said the India captain at the post-match press conference.

"Many things happen outside. People say a lot of things but as an individual we know that there is no one more committed to Indian cricket than Dhoni and people should let him have his space because he has contributed so much for the nation.

"They should let him figure out things on his own and what he needs to do. He is one of the most intelligent cricketers and he is not someone who is not aware about what needs to be done. As a team we are totally in sync with what he is doing and we are all very happy for him," said Kohli.

The skipper also reckons that the just-concluded Australia series has proved that number five is the most logical spot for Dhoni.

"Dhoni batted at number four in 2016 for a while. But after that he has been pretty happy playing at five and six for the team. We felt that number five was the ideal position for him. And if you saw him bat at Adelaide as well he was pretty comfortable in that position because that allows him to do a bit of both - get some game time as well as finish games off, attacking as and when required," Kohli said.

Dhoni played a crucial role in India winning the decisive third ODI with his unbeaten 87-run knock on Friday and at Adelaide too his unbeaten half-century had scripted India's win.

"He was more himself from that game (Adelaide) on, and he built onto this knock today. We are pretty happy with the batting combination that we had in Adelaide. When someone like Hardik Pandya is not there you have to balance somehow. So a lot of things vary in that regard. But we as a team, and myself as captain, we feel that Dhoni at five is the most logical. It is the ideal place for him and the team as well," Kohli said.

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OVERS 1.2: Rohit is hit on the back pad, Aussies appeal, umpire turns it down, Aussies take a review, replays show the ball was hitting the top of the bails, so the umpire's call stays

Peter Siddle bowls the second over

Jhye Richardson bowls the first over for Australia, Rohit Sharma on strike

OVERS 48.4: OUT! Stanlake edges a Shami delivery onto his stumps. AUSTRALIA 230 ALL OUT IN 48.4 OVERS

End of Chahal's spell: 10-0-42-6. There are the joint-best bowling figures by an Indian at the MCG in an ODI

OVERS 47.4: OUT! Sixth wicket for Chahal as he has Zampa (8) caught by Shankar at long-on! Australia 229/9

That's a 5-wkt haul for @yuzi_chahal 👏👏 #AUSvIND https://t.co/GReuwxIjIu

— BCCI (@BCCI) 1547791603000

OVERS 45.6: OUT! Fifth wicket for Chahal as he traps Handscomb (58) plumb in front. Australia 219/8

OVERS 43.3: OUT! Chahal has Richardson (16) caught by Jadhav at short mid-wicket. Australia 206/7

OVERS 42.5: FOUR! 200 up for Australia as Richardson pulls a Shami delivery to the square leg fence

OVERS 41.5: Fifty for Handscomb off 57 balls as he on drives a Chahal delivery for a single

Australia 190/6, ten more overs to go

OVERS 39.3: FOUR! Handscomb chips a Shankar delivery to the mid-wicket fence for his second boundary

OVERS 34.5: OUT! The bouncer works for Shami, Maxwell (26) goes for the pull again, but edges to fine leg, Bhuvneshwar comes running in and takes a brilliant catch diving forward. Australia 161/6

OVERS 34.4: FOUR! Shami bangs it in, Maxwell goes for the hook but edges it well over Dhoni and it races to the fence

Shami replaces Jadeja in the attack

OVERS 33.6: FOUR! 150 up for Australia as Maxwell hits through the covers for his fourth boundary

OVERS 33.2: FOUR! Maxwell pulls a full toss from Chahal to the mid-wicket fence

OVERS 32.3: FOUR! Now Jadeja bowls short and Maxwell pulls to the mid-wicket fence again

OVERS 31.6: FOUR! Chahal pitches it short and Maxwell pulls to the mid-wicket fence for his first boundary

OVERS 29.3: OUT! Chahal induces an edge off Stoinis' (10) bat and Rohit Sharma dives to his right to take a fine catch. Australia 123/5

OVERS 27.2: FOUR! Stoinis on drives a Chahal delivery for his first boundary

OVERS 23.4: OUT! Khawaja (34) gets a soft leading edge and Chahal takes a simple return catch. Australia 101/4

OVERS 23.2: OUT! Chahal has Marsh (39) stumped by Dhoni off a wide delivery down the leg side. Australia 100/3

Yuzvendra Chahal has been introduced in the attack

OVERS 22.3: FOUR! Jadeja continues, Khawaja reverse sweeps for his second boundary

50-run stand up between Khawaja and Marsh off 64 balls

15 runs off that over by Jadhav

OVERS 19.4: FOUR! Another short ball from Jadhav and Marsh pulls to mid-wicket again

OVERS 19.2: Marsh hits through the covers for three runs

OVERS 19.1: FOUR! Jadhav bowls it really short and Marsh pulls to the mid-wicket fence, that bounced just before the boundary

18 overs gone, Ravindra Jadeja has been introduced in the attack

OVERS 16.3: FOUR! Marsh pulls to the mid-wicket fence for his first boundary

OVERS 16.1: 50 up for Australia as Khawaja flicks a Shankar delivery to fine leg for a single

OVERS 15.2: DROPPED! Jadhav induces an edge off Marsh's bat, the ball goes in and out of Dhoni's gloves

Double bowling change, Kedar Jadhav has been introduced in the attack

Ten overs gone, debutant Vijay Shankar has been introduced in the attack

OVERS 8.6: OUT! Bhuvneshwar traps Finch (14) plumb in front, so standing outside the crease didn't help the Aussie captain. Australia 27/2

OVERS 8.5: Bhuvneshwar bowls from just adjacent to the umpire, Finch pulls away, it is declared a dead ball

OVERS 6.3: FOUR! Finch edges to third man just wide of the lone slip for his first boundary

OVERS 6.2: Finch covers drives a Bhuvneshwar delivery, Jadeja gives chase, pulls it back just short of the boundary and Finch runs four

OVERS 5.3: FOUR! Khawaja square cuts a Shami delivery to the point fence to get off the mark

OVERS 2.5: OUT! Bhuvneshwar comes round the wicket, Carey (5) edges to second slip for Virat Kohli to take the catch. Australia 8/1

OVERS 1.3: Carey pulls to mid-wicket for his first boundary

Mohammed Shami bowls the second over of the match

OVER 0.6: Finch edges but the ball just falls short of Rohit Sharma at first slip

Rain stops, play resumes at the MCG

Rain stops play after just two deliveries, Australia 1/0

Bhuvneshwar Kumar bowls the first over the match, Alex Carey on stike

Start of the match has been delayed by 10 minutes due to rain

Yuzvendra Chahal comes in for Kuldeep Yadav and Kedar Jadhav replaces Ambati Rayudu.

Vijay Shankar has got his ODI cap, he will be making his debut at the MCG, replacing Mohammed Siraj.

For Australia, Billy Stanlake comes in for Behrendorff and Adam Zampa replaces Nathan Lyon.

Indian captain Virat Kohli wins toss, opts to bowl against Australia in overcast conditions

Toss was delayed slightly due to rain

India (Playing XI): Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli(c), MS Dhoni(w), Kedar Jadhav, Dinesh Karthik, Vijay Shankar, Ravindra Jadeja, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Yuzvendra Chahal

Australia (Playing XI): Alex Carey(w), Aaron Finch(c), Usman Khawaja, Shaun Marsh, Peter Handscomb, Marcus Stoinis, Glenn Maxwell, Jhye Richardson, Billy Stanlake, Peter Siddle, Adam Zampa

MUMBAI: Former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly on Thursday said 'we should move on' from the controversy surrounding Hardik Pandya and KL Rahul's sexist comments because he is sure the two will learn from it and become better persons.

Speaking at an event here, Ganguly said he hasn't seen the 'Koffee with Karan' episode in which Pandya and Rahul's misogynistic comments on women led to a provisional suspension on them. But he offered a sympathetic view on the under-fire duo.

"People make mistakes, let's not go too far here. I am sure, whoever has done it will realise and come out a better person. We are human beings not machines that we will always be perfect. We should move on and make sure it doesn't happen again," Ganguly said on the raging controversy.

Pandya and Rahul were forced to return midway through the ongoing ODI series against Australia and India captain Virat Kohli condemned their statements on hookups with multiple women as 'inappropriate'.

They have been show caused twice by the BCCI since then and are also being put through an inquiry.

Ganguly said most cricketers are 'great guys'.

"...they (cricketers) are humble, every now and then one or two make mistakes but I know most of them personally and they are great guys," Ganguly said during the trailer launch of '22 Yards' at a suburb here.

Pandya and Rahul, pending the outcome of the inquiry, will not be a part of the Indian team. After missing the ongoing ODI series, they are set to miss the upcoming New Zealand Tour as well.

Ganguly, who has been credited with shaping Indian cricket during his captaincy stint, said it's not that modern-day cricketers are not obedient.

"Look at Virat Kohli, he is such a fantastic role model. India is a fortunate country, every generation produces players who all of us cherish, there was (Sunil) Gavaskar, then came (Sachin) Tendulkar, when Tendulkar finished people thought who's next, now it's Virat Kohli.

"A lot of these cricketers are fantastic human beings because they come from middle class backgrounds and fight their way up. Can you imagine 11 selected out of the millions play the game."

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ADELAIDE: Virat Kohli has no peers in ODIs but he has a priceless message for youngsters - sole focus on limited overs formats shouldn't be an 'excuse' for not being able to cope with the challenges of Test cricket.

World's No. 1 batsman with 25 Test hundreds warned that youngsters will have mental problems if they don't embrace the pristine form of five-day cricket.

"If we focus too much on shorter formats - yes, they're important - but if we solely focus and look at them as an escape or an excuse to not be in the kind of situations that Test cricket presents to you, then I think there will start being a mental problem with the cricketers coming up," Kohli was quoted as saying by Star Sports.

The Indian skipper, who has played a few defining knocks against world class bowlers like James Anderson, Stuart Broad and Mitchell Starc during the past year spoke about the hard work that goes into making of a quality Test player.

"As long as you're willing to wake up every morning for five days and do the hard yards and go do the dirty work - if you're willing to bat for two hours and not score a run for the team - I think that is what people should prepare (youngsters) (for)."

Kohli said the current batch of Indian Test cricketers are trying to set an example for the younger generation.

"That (vision) will require the team to lay out a certain things that needs to be done and for the next lot to keep following. So (when) the next lot that comes in, they have to maintain that vision and then the people coming in will follow."

Virat Kohli has reaffirmed his commitment towards Test cricket, saying he wants India to become a superpower in the game's longest format.

Number-one ranked India recently won their maiden Test series in Australia under Kohli's leadership.

"I wouldn't say goal but I would rather speak of a vision, which is for India to be a superpower in Test cricket or a very, very strong side in Test cricket in the years to come,"

"I think if Indian cricket respects Test cricket, and Indian players respect Test cricket, then Test cricket will stay at the top because of the fan base that we have all over the world."

Kohli was made India captain for the first time in the middle of the 2014-15 Test series in Australia with MS Dhoni announcing a shock retirement.

He credited coach Ravi Shastri for making his job easier.

"Ever since 2014, I think he's (Shastri) one person who's given me honest feedback whenever things required to be altered.

"I remember we sat down (last year). I'd scored a Test century and a fifty in the same game in England, so he called me and he said, as far as batting is concerned, I'm not going to discuss anything with you now because you've done something which I am proud of and everyone is proud of.

"But as a captain, I need to start thinking how to get the best out of this team and how to tactically be spot on. And that really hit me because I felt like, you know, there's so much more to captaincy than you sometimes think."

Before departing for the Australia tour, Kohli had dismissed the perception that Shastri was "yes-man" to him. He explained again what Shastri brings to the table.

"He is one person, because he's done so much commentary, and he's seen the game so much and has played so much himself - just watching the game - he knows where the game is heading.

"So just getting feedback from him constantly has been the biggest help for me, in terms of moulding my own personality into captaincy. He's someone who has never tried to change me just to be able to fit into the captaincy mode," Kohli added.

SYDNEY: Virat Kohli smashed his 39th one-day international century as India claimed a dramatic six-wicket victory over Australia at a sweltering Adelaide Oval on Tuesday to level up the three-match series at 1-1.

Skipper Kohli contributed 104 of his side's runs as they successfully chased down their victory target of 299 for the loss of four wickets to send the series into a decider on Friday at Melbourne Cricket Ground.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni, clearly suffering in the heat, smashed a huge six to bring the scores level and reached his half-century before scoring the winning run with four balls to spare.

"Very pleased," Kohli said afterwards. "It was a really tough day. MS in the end was tired as well. We need a good day's rest, a good day's travel and then we'll recuperate and get ready for the MCG."

Shaun Marsh had earlier scored a sparkling 131, his second century in three outings in the format, to drive the hosts to 298 for nine in their 50 overs in the heat of the afternoon when temperatures soared well above the 40 degree Celsius mark.

Kohli took over under the lights on what remained a muggy evening and took his century off 108 balls, pumping his first towards the dressing room after taking two runs to square leg to reach the milestone.

In all, he hit five fours and two sixes in his 112-ball innings but left disappointed after smacking a Jhye Richardson delivery straight to Glenn Maxwell on the deep midwicket boundary in the 44th over.

Dhoni (55 not out) had played within himself as he kept Kohli company in a partnership of 82 but hit a six for his first boundary soon after his captain departed and added 57 with Dinesh Karthik (25 not out) to get the tourists over the line.

"I think we hung on really well," said Australia captain Aaron Finch. "But when you come up against a side that's in form like India ... you know you have to keep taking wickets and when the old pro Dhoni is there at the end it's tough."

Finch won the toss for the second successive match but that was as far as his luck went and he departed for six as he did on Saturday when the hosts won the series opener in Sydney by 34 runs.

The hosts have made a habit of making starts in recent matches and Usman Khawaja had put 21 runs on the board before being brilliantly run-out by a direct hit from Ravindra Jadeja at cover-point.

Marsh and Glenn Maxwell put on 94 runs off 66 balls for the sixth wicket to accelerate the scoring in a partnership that took the top order batsman to his seventh ODI century.

Maxwell blasted 48 off 37 balls before he holed out to Karthik at long off the bowling of seamer Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who finished with figures of 4-45.

That triggered an Australia collapse with Marsh lasting only two more balls before becoming Kumar's third victim and the home side able to add only three more runs at a cost of four wickets.

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