A summer of discontent in England may have paved the way for belated smiles within the Indian camp after recent victories over Sussex and Kent but M.S. Dhoni has a tougher challenge ahead. A debilitating 0-4 loss in the Tests will not be glossed over even if India puts it past England in the lone Twenty20 and five-match ODI series which will commence on Wednesday; yet, victory would offer hope and glimpses into the structure of an evolving squad.

The journey from ecstasy to agony has been quick for the team, which ruled the world on April 2 but struggled in the longer version against England. The capitulation was rapid and to think of it, the Test squad still has the services of Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and V.V.S. Laxman! Who after them? The question — who after them? — must be haunting Dhoni. Tendulkar and Dravid are part of the mix for the ODIs. The veterans will add stability to a batting unit that will miss Virender Sehwag while Gautam Gambhir, who suffered a head injury in the fourth and final Test, remains a doubtful starter.

Dhoni, has been labelled ‘captain cool' for his phlegmatic approach and a face that perhaps masks simmering emotions but in the coming months, his mettle as skipper will be tested while he shepherds a team coping with injury-enforced withdrawals and the whispers about the twilight zone that Tendulkar, Dravid and Laxman inhabit. “All the vehicles have been serviced,” he had said a few months ago when asked about his players. The explanation may be simplistic but Dhoni has revelled in an earthy style of leadership. Squatting on the floor with the younger bunch in a semi-circle around him while he held forth was one of his earlier vignettes. Not for him the intellectual vigour of a Michael Brearley or former Australian coach John Buchanan's references to ancient books like Sun Tzu's Art of War.

His decisions may have defied convention but they worked out well, be it throwing the ball to Joginder Sharma for the last over against Pakistan in the 2007 ICC Twenty20 final or promoting himself over an in-form Yuvraj Singh in the World Cup summit clash in Mumbai. That lucky streak somehow has waned and the inexplicable decision to recall R.P. Singh showed that some instinctive decisions might have their roots in nostalgia and not in merit. The talk about India's younger crop struggling against the short ball will do the rounds as Suresh Raina, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma get set for their stints in coloured clothing and that along with a tepid bowling attack, will stretch Dhoni's worry-lines.

“Let them bowl the bouncer and we will show them how to play,” Raina had said a few years ago while clad in denims, sitting on a high stool in a Bangalore restaurant. The ground reality has been different. Mixed results as player Purely as a player, the Indian captain has had mixed results. He scored 220 runs in the Tests against England, behind Tendulkar (273) and Dravid (461) while as a wicketkeeper he was a picture of discomfort despite taking 13 catches.

“I think he has sour hands but he normally catches the ball aggressively. I have seen him giving (the ball) a lot (to the slip fielders immediately after collecting) and he doesn't normally do that. England is one of the toughest places to keep wickets,” said former England wicketkeeper Paul Nixon. Leaders of teams in transition, adopt varied methods. Allan Border, who inherited a weak Australian squad following a weeping Kim Hughes' resignation from captaincy, opted for players with steel like Steve Waugh in the 1980s and also enforced a stay-aloof-from-rivals policy. It remains to be seen how Dhoni will steer the team in the coming days.

A skipper's equation with the media too comes under some strain when the results fail to match expectations. It may be recalled that after being named England captain, Nasser Hussain told his father Jawad Hussain: “Dad stop reading the papers.” Conflicting versions Dhoni does keep his distance. On Sunday at the Grace Road Ground here, there were conflicting versions around the lack of access to Indian scribes.

Security staff said that the team did not want the media while manager Shivlal Yadav mentioned that it was the police that barred the press. Dhoni the leader will come under focus and if his men can forget their dismal outing in the Tests and put up an improved show in the ODIs, at least some pride could be salvaged before the team leaves England.