Dhoni says Indian pacers need to hone skills while bowling in 'slog-overs' to defend WC title

India cricket team captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has said that his side's pacemen need to hone their skills while bowling in the slog-overs if they are to defend their World Cup title in Australia and New Zealand early next year.

Dhoni's squad suffered a 41-run defeat by England in the fifth and final ODI at Headingley on Friday but still took the series 3-1 after a trio of crushing wins. India repeatedly exploited England's longstanding weakness against spin bowling and might well have done so again on Friday but for Joe Root's 113 on his Yorkshire home ground.

For once India's batsmen proved unequal to the chase, despite a fine fifty from Ambati Rayudu and Ravindra Jadeja's dashing 87, Sport24 reported.

Dhoni said that three hundred was par score, and his side gave away quite a few soft wickets in the middle order. He added that they lost too many wickets and were not in position to chase the runs, so those dismissals really cost India the game.

India won the five-match ODI series against England thanks to the tourists spin attack.

However, pitches and overhead conditions are likely to be very different 'Down Under' when the World Cup starts in February, although India will first have the benefit of a tri-series in Australia also featuring England.

Dhoni said that he thinks 'slog bowling' is something, which he would like to improve as a team because the conditions in Australia and New Zealand will be very different. He added that in New Zealand, there are not many games for India but the grounds are not very big.

So, the skipper said that they cannot use spinners too much after the 40th over. He also said that to some extent it would put extra pressure on the fast bowlers to stand up and take more responsibility.

Dhoni said that it is really important for the pacers to use the coming games well but at the same time, the next five ODIs at home against the West Indies, India will get a fair amount of dew so they might find it tough to execute their yorkers or may not find their reverse swing and it won't be exactly what the squad might face later in Australia and New Zealand.