Inzamam-ul-Haq believed that former Indian skipper MS Dhoni should have announced retirement from the ground It is the place where one earns respect and stardom. He cited Sachin Tendulkar’s example and said that if one has a big fan following, he should retire from the ground to give something to fans to cheer about.
MS Dhoni was India’s most successful skipper since under him, India lifted ICC World Cup in 2011 besides winning the maiden 2007 T20 ICC World Cup. After the 2013 ICC Champions trophy win, MS Dhoni became the first and only one to date to have laid hands on all three ICC trophies.
Inzamam-ul-Haq: MS Dhoni Should Have Retired While Playing Cricket
Ex-Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq said that he felt that retirement should not be taken hastily on social media which according to him was not the right way for a player of MS Dhoni’s stature.
MS Dhoni on Saturday evening broke the silence on his future planning on international cricket by sharing a post on Instagram which was a four-minute long clip of Dhoni’s international career, and the caption read: “Thanks a lot for your love and support throughout. From 1929 hrs consider me as retired.”
The video had the iconic song ‘Mai Pal Do Pal Ka Shayar Hu’ from Amitabh Bachchan’s ‘Kabhie Kabhie’ playing in the background as MS Dhoni shared his incredible journey including his run out in his last ODI against New Zealand which saw India’s exit from the 2019 World Cup.
Ex-Pakistan captain and selector Inzamam-ul-Haq wished MS Dhoni the best for future but also said this was not the right way for a player like him to announce his retirement.
In a video released on his YouTube channel Inzamam-ul-Haq – The Match Winner, the former cricketer said, “Dhoni has millions of fan across the globe who want to see him play on the ground. In my opinion a player of such stature, shouldn’t have taken retirement while sitting at home. He should have announced retirement from the ground.”
Explaining his views, Inzamam-ul-Haq recalled a conversation that he had with Sachin Tendulkar during his playing days, when he had suggested that Sachin Tendulkar should end his journey where it had begun.
“This is the same thing, I once told Sachin Tendulkar. When you have such a big fanfare, you should ideally end your journey from the ground, after all it is this ground where you earned such respect and stardom.”
“In my opinion, even Dhoni should have done the same then his fans would have been more happy, including me since I rate him as the best Indian skipper,” Inzamam said.
In his video, the former Pakistan great rated MS Dhoni as one of the most talented players the sport had ever witnessed. He also credited the wicketkeeper-batsman for turning “players into great players.” as he knew how to build players.
“MS Dhoni is such a clever cricketer that he knew how to built players. Suresh Raina and R Ashwin are two best players, MS Dhoni produced. His level of understanding of the sport was so good that he used to pick players and then turn them into great players,” he said.
He credited MS Dhoni for building the best players like Suresh Raina and Ravichandran Ashwin besides crediting him for finishing matches.
Inzamam-ul-Haq Praises MS Dhoni For Finishing Close Matches
Inzamam-ul-Haq also hailed MS Dhoni’s finishing abilities, saying it was this quality that made him a great player.
“He is that player who knew how to finish the match. He is not the kind who will score a century in every match, but he built his innings in such a manner that the team finishes on the winning side.”
“Single-handedly, he could win matches. For example the 2011 World Cup, he came to bat at the No 4 position reflected the amount of confidence he carried with himself,” the Pakistan great said.
MS Dhoni also had 195 international stumpings which stand as the highest in ODIs. His highest score of 183* also was the best by any wicket-keeper. Although he retired from tests in 2014 to give guys like Wriddhiman Saha a chance, he continued to play white-ball cricket from which he retired on Independence Day, 15th August 2020. Nevertheless, he scored 4876 runs averaging 38.09 in 90 tests.
MS Dhoni along with Suresh Raina who also retired will be seen in the CSK team battling out to win IPL which will commence on September 19 and end on November 10. Rohit Sharma, his Indian teammate who will captain Mumbai Indians was slated to meet Chennai Super Kings led by MS Dhoni in the Emirates on 29th March but IPL was postponed and shifted away from India.