As per a viral tweet, Sunil Gavaskar wants MS Dhoni to never retire.
The legendary MS Dhoni’s future remains uncertain. His theory of the perfect IPL farewell was ruined by the Royal Challengers Bengaluru when they defeated Chennai Super Kings two weeks ago to secure the final Playoff berth. After the defeat, Dhoni quietly disappeared even though Virat Kohli went looking for him. And the next thing you know, he reached home and was biking on the roads of Ranchi. For the first time, even CSK has remained mum when it comes to addressing what’s next for Dhoni. Kasi Viswanathan has time and again reiterated the same thing – ‘I don’t know’, although he and CSK are hopeful Dhoni returns next year, hoping to win the IPL for a sixth time for the ‘Yellove Army’.
The MS Dhoni suspense remains(AP)
July 7 is Dhoni’s birthday, and on the day he turns 43, former India captain Sunil Gavaskar feels MSD would have made up his mind. A viral tweet posted by a user on X, claims Gavaskar wants Dhoni to never retire, suggesting MSD take up more of a Davis Cup role where players are part of the team but don’t particularly play all the time.
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“I feel he will make a big announcement on July 7. MS Dhoni should never announce retirement from the IPL. Instead, he should stop playing in it. Whenever Dhoni feels fine, he can return to the league. Even BCCI will not be able to stop him as he will not retire from the tournament,” Gavaskar, whose birthday falls three days after Dhoni’s, was quoted as saying.
While HT could not independently verify the statements, the quotes posted by the user are usually genuine, authentic and not fake. Gavaskar is believed to have said these lines while doing commentary during the IPL 2024 final between Kolkata Knight Riders and Sunrisers Hyderabad on Sunday.
What’s next for MS Dhoni?
Last year, after CSK had defeated KKR in an IPL match, Gavaskar got Dhoni to sign his shirt after the game. In fact, the incomparable Gavaskar has always held Dhoni in very high regard, so much so that he once confessed that if he had a wish to make during his final moments, he would want to see Kapil Dev lift the 1983 World Cup and Dhoni’s six off Nuwan Kulasekara that won the ODI World Cup in 2011.
It was in 2019 that Dhoni, very similarly, vanished from the picture after India lost to New Zealand in the semi-final of the 2019 World Cup. For the next few months, the world heard nothing until the evening of August 15, 2020, when Dhoni announced his retirement from international cricket.
Regardless, it wouldn’t be easy if Dhoni had to return for one final shot. The extent of Dhoni’s muscle tear, which was reported, is not yet known, and if he is to undergo surgery for the same, the task becomes a bit more difficult. Dhoni still has a few months to decide, or who knows… he may already have decided. No one knows what’s going on inside the head of the mad scientist.
This is the guy who decided to retire from Test cricket when no one saw it coming. This is the guy who handed over the captaincy to Ruturaj Gaikwad when again, no one, barring Gaikwad, had little idea about the move. Irrespective, when the time comes for Dhoni to finally ride into the sunset fully, rest assured that it will be a jolt out of the blue.
