Sunil Gavaskar feels MS Dhoni should bow out of cricket with grace instead of being pushed out

Former India captain MS Dhoni has been AWOL from the cricket field ever since the ICC World Cup 2019 semi-final against New Zealand which India lost and crashed out of the tournament. He excused himself from the limited-overs tour to West Indies and instead served the Indian Army for 15 days. Many expected him to be picked for the home series against South Africa, but selectors decided to go with Pant.

There have been many conflicting statements when it comes to MS Dhoni and his future with the team is still hanging in the air. There have been no statements from the 38-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman himself about his future, neither chief selector MSK Prasad has given any indications about plans for him. However, Sunil Gavaskar, the legendary Indian batsman, feels that the Jharkhand man should leave with dignity.

he should be going without being pushed out, says Gavaskar on Dhoni

“Nobody knows to know what is in MSD’s mind. Only he can clarify what he thinks his future with Indian cricket is. But I think with him being 38 now, India should be looking ahead. Because by the time the next T20 World Cup comes around he will be 39 years old,” Sunil Gavaskar was quoted as saying by India Today.

Gavaskar admitted the value of having someone like him in the team who contributes with runs and stumpings and catches. He reckons that Dhoni’s mere calm presence helps the youngsters become comfortable on the field and even the captain is able to feed off of his experience when it comes to crunch situations. However, he believed that Dhoni’s time was up as an international cricketer.

“Everybody has a shelf life and I do believe with the greatest of respect to Dhoni and I am a fan as millions of others; I just believe he should be going without being pushed out. He should be going on his own terms,” the legend further added.

Both MSK Prasad and Virat Kohli have left the decision of retiring up to the most successful captain of Indian cricket team, saying that Dhoni has always known what to do with impeccable timing and despite the impending knowledge that he might quit cricket anytime, have backed the 2-Time World Cup-winning skipper if he decides to carry on.

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