MS Dhoni shares his side of the story on the team hotel fire

Former Indian captain MS Dhoni was preparing himself in the head for the big semi-final of the Vijay Hazare Trophy against Bengal early in the morning. But while he was having breakfast along with some of his Jharkhand teammates at the Welcome hotel in Dwarka as someone noticed smoke rising around. By then a Jharkhand player posted the same in the team’s WhatsApp group and asked the other players in their room to beware.

The hotel staff soon got into action and safely evacuated more than 500 guests who were put in the hotel. Along with Jharkhand, the Tamil Nadu team was also in the same hotel and they all left the premises without caring about their kits and equipments. The players were taken to the Air Force Palam ground, where the semi-final was supposed to be played but due to the unforeseen situation was postponed.

At the Palam ground talking to Telegraph India skipper MS Dhoni detailed the incidents first hand. He said: “I was told the fire had started at the nearby shopping mall and spread to the hotel later. There was thick smoke and initially we didn’t realise what was happening,”

He admitted that it was a bit scary but he showed great presence of mind to stay calm which was revealed by other teammates later as they made their way out of the fire stuck hotel. “It was a bit scary, but we managed to come out. Thankfully, all my teammates and other guests came out unhurt,” Dhoni added.

Ishank Jaggi a member of Dhoni’s team wrote a blog for a website after the incident and described how things panned out and how Captain Cool was still cool. “Meanwhile, Mahi bhai also joined us in front of the lift. Once we came down the lift to the lobby, we discovered that the fire did not catch in the hotel but in the shopping mall adjacent to it.”

“I was amazed to see the calmness on the face of Mahi bhai. He was so relaxed with the situation. He kept on assuring us not to get panicked and that everything will be under control.” Jaggi wrote.

This situation gave Bengal wicketkeeper-batsman Shreevats Goswami an opportunity to interact with the legendary wicketkeeper. “I have never had an opportunity to enjoy a one-on-one session with Dhoni bhai. Today since the match was postponed, I went up to him and sought his time. He obliged almost immediately. I spent good 15-20 minutes talking about my game. I was a fan but today I was more of a student,” Shreevats told PTI on the sidelines of the Vijay Hazare Trophy.