MS Dhoni. (photo/social media) The news didn’t come with drama. There was no waiting for a farewell match, a final lap around the ground on the shoulders of teammates, or a long speech explaining the moment. It came as a press release. No association was allowed to turn the moment into an event. There were no speeches. There was also a farewell press conference.Without any ceremony, 44 minutes after MS Dhoni completed his post-match press conference after the Boxing Day Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, the BCCI sent out a press release. The news came an hour after India managed to draw the away Test – the first time in the previous 14 Australia-India Tests that the visiting team had not lost. It came in the middle of the series. Nothing from that moment indicated an end. But it was.
India can survive without Virat and Rohit, not without Bumrah
Dhoni was batting on 24 when the match was called off early at the MCG. With four overs to go, India still had four wickets in hand. He did not mention the retirement during the usual captain’s end-of-match press conference. The announcement was shortly followed by a press release from the BCCI, which cited “the strain of playing all formats” as the reason for its decision.Virat Kohli was named India’s captain for the final Test of the series in Sydney, a series that India had already lost.In the months leading up to his retirement, Dhoni was dealing with fitness issues. He missed five One Day Internationals against Sri Lanka in November due to a hand injury. The same injury ruled him out of the first Test against Australia in Adelaide. Since the start of 2008, including international matches across formats as well as IPL and Champions League T20 matches, Dhoni has played 398 matches. This was the most by any cricketer during this period. Suresh Raina was next with 369 games.Dhoni’s place in the Test side was not in doubt, but his batting declined in 2014. He averaged 33 in 17 innings that year. India’s overseas results also suffered under his leadership. Since 2011, India have won only two of their 22 away Tests and lost 13.But Dhoni’s Test career has never been about numbers.
From Ticket Collector to Test Captain
Dhoni’s journey to the top of Indian Test cricket did not follow a familiar path. He broke what many saw as a metropolitan hold on the game and carved out a distinctive place in Indian Test history. His rise took him from a job as a ticket collector with the Indian Railways to leading the Indian Test team.His first Test as captain came against South Africa in Kanpur in April 2008, after regular skipper Anil Kumble was ruled out due to injury. Dhoni took over the role full-time later that year when Kumble retired after the Delhi Test against Australia in October. Under Dhoni, India reached the No. 1 position in the ICC Test rankings in 2009, a position it held until the 2011 tour of England.During his Test career, Dhoni played 90 matches after making his debut in 2005. He scored 4,876 runs at an average of 38, with a highest score of 224 against Australia in Chennai in 2013. He accounted for 294 dismissals as a wicketkeeper.Long before international success came, people close to Indian domestic cricket believed that Dhoni was destined for bigger things. Nevertheless, his career soon took a different direction. After not being informed of his selection for the East Zone side, Dhoni accepted a lift to the Kolkata airport. The car broke down in the middle of the journey and he missed his flight. This allowed Deep Dasgupta to play the Duleep Trophy match the next morning. Dhoni was left out. The failure delayed but did not stop his progress.He continued to work in domestic cricket and eventually earned his first Test cap against Sri Lanka in Chennai in 2005. Over time, the city claimed him as one of its own. Dhoni was never seen as a traditional Test cricketer. His methods, both behind the stumps and with the bat, stood out. For him, the game was as much about decision-making as it was about skill.He did not hide his limitations. Instead, he took over the Indian Test side in its twilight and handed it back, just before dawn. In the process, he became India’s most successful Test captain in terms of wins at the time, leading the team to 27 victories. He also presided over India’s 18-month run at the top of the Test rankings between 2009 and 2011.Dhoni’s Test career spanned 90 matches. He scored 4,876 runs at an average of 38, with a highest score of 224 against Australia in Chennai in 2013. He completed 294 dismissals behind the stumps, the fifth highest in Test history.Before the 2014 Melbourne Test, the last drawn Test between India and Australia was in Delhi in 2008. This match marked Anil Kumble’s last appearance in Tests. Six years later, after another drawn Test, Dhoni retired.There was no announcement from the podium, no time for reflection. Just a line in a press release, sent 44 minutes after a routine media interaction, closes a chapter on one of India’s most illustrious Test careers.When he did, the message was unspoken but clear: “To you, Virat!”
