Top three not playing all games because they are slow: Dhoni

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Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni on Sunday backed the team's rotation policy in the top order, saying the top three batsmen were not playing each game because they are slow on the field.

Dhoni explained the reasons why Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar and Gautam Gambhir are not playing all the games together, even as India lost the tri-series game against Australia by 110 runs at the Gabba here.

"It might happen (they playing together, but) it would affect our fielding in a big way, it's not only these three, there are quite a few other players who are also slow on the field. If you really add it up, you would have only two or three good fielders."

"These fielders are not bad but on these big fields, they are slightly on the slower side. They would be exploited once the ball goes to them, the Australians and Sri Lankans would look for those two or three runs to put pressure on their body. Their throwing and diving needs to be good," Dhoni said.

The skipper said fielding in the big grounds of Australia could lead to breakdowns.

"They are safe fielders on the slower side. The pressure would be on them. They would have to throw from positions where there would be pressure on them. There would be breakdowns. It's not like India where the ball goes to a boundary and you just throw it back. Here, you can pull muscle or a hamstring."

"Batting and bowling is something which has variables but fielding is one department where you could always score. It keeps the morale of the team up, there is intensity."