I’m sure MS Dhoni would’ve had given retirement a thought a couple of years back itself: Anjum Chopra

Anjum Chopra, the former India women’s cricketer, feels that only MS Dhoni should be the only one talking about when he would be announcing his retirement. The 38-year-old will be turning 39 this July and hasn’t played any competitive cricket since the 2019 World Cup where he was run out in the semis against New Zealand. From there on, speculations on when he will return has been doing the rounds.

Dhoni was set to make a comeback in the 2020 edition of the cash-rich Indian Premier League (IPL), representing the Chennai Super Kings (CSK). However, since the tournament has been postponed indefinitely due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Jharkhand-born’s return has been deferred.

MS Dhoni’s fans would want him to be back

The 42-year-old Anjum, who played 12 Tests, 127 ODIs and 18 T20Is, reckons that Dhoni might already have given plans of retiring a thought. Moreover, she said that players like Rishabh Pant and KL Rahul, who both have been donning the keeper’s gloves for Team India, won’t be complaining about Dhoni’s absence.

“I think only MS Dhoni can answer the questions relating to his retirement. And I don’t think anybody else should answer this question. All his fans throughout the world would want him to be back on the field, which they would’ve to have in IPL had the COVID-19 situation not come in the way,” Chopra was quoted as saying in an exclusive chat with Sportskeeda.

“He would’ve had already given retirement a thought a couple of years back itself, I am sure of it. But as seen in the past as well, nobody wanted Sachin Tendulkar to retire as well. Do you think Rishabh Pant and KL Rahul would be complaining that MS Dhoni isn’t available for selection? Nobody is complaining in the team because MS Dhoni is missing,” she added.

The T20 World Cup in Australia is scheduled to be played later this year from October. Though he hasn’t been in action for quite some time, he is said to be in contention for a spot in the Indian team for the mega event. In the last two years or so, though he has collected laurels, he has also had to face flak for his indifferent style of batting.