Dhoni retirement : End of an epoch in Indian Cricket
MS Dhoni retirement: An unmatched legacy
MS Dhoni officially brought his international career to an end with a video post on Instagram on Saturday.The soundtrack he chose, along with a slideshow of images from his career and a cryptic Instagram post – “Thanks a lot for ur love and support throughout. from 1929 hrs consider me as Retired.” – was Mukesh’s mein pal do pal ka shayar hoon from the film Kabhie Kabhie.
His last appearance for Team India was in the 2019 World Cup semifinal in a losing effort against New Zealand. The speculations were rife regarding his cricket future and it intensified further when the T20 World Cup was postponed last month. And on the Independence Day, Dhoni put those rumours to rest as he officially announced that he is hanging up his boots.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni came from the cricketing backwaters of Ranchi, batted unconventionally, kept unconventionally and rose to superstardom from a utility package. Throughout his 16-year-long international career and even in retirement, he remained one of a kind.
A tally of 17,266 runs across formats in international cricket and 829 victims notwithstanding, Dhoni wore his greatness as loosely as if he was a pal do pal ka cricketer. He revelled in his sharp mind on the field that made him India’s most successful captain. He is the only captain to lift all three ICC trophies – World T20, 50-over World Cup and the Champions Trophy. His journey was so fascinating that it warranted a biopic on him.
Pathan told while speaking on the show ‘Cricket Connected’ on Star Sports, where he was in conversation with former cricketer VVS Laxman and the sports anchor Jatin Sapru, “When it comes to playing in the IPL, I think all the bowlers, even the players who have retired, guys like me as well, they will be very happy not to have to bowl to MS Dhoni, because he is going to go with full flow. I am really looking forward to it, and all the bowlers, be careful. Anyway, when he plays for the CSK, he enjoys that, his best comes out as a batsman as well.”
“One record if you talk about, which is going to stay forever is MS Dhoni’s three ICC trophies. I don’t think so any other captain would ever be able to achieve that! I think, whether it the T20 World Cup, whether it is ICC Champions Trophy or 2011 World Cup,’ Gambhir said on Star Sports’ ‘Cricket Connected’ show.
