Twitter praises MS Dhoni after he dons gloves with ‘Balidaan Badge’ of the armed forces’ fame

Former India captain MS Dhoni’s admiration for the armed forces is something not unknown. The 37-year-old wicket-keeper-batsman also holds an honorary rank of lieutenant colonel in the Indian Territorial Army. In March, he came up with the idea of the Indian cricketers wearing the camouflaged caps of the Indian Army during an ODI against Australia in his hometown Ranchi. On that occasion, the gesture was made to pay tributes to the martyrs of the Pulwama terror attack in February.

On Wednesday, as India took on South Africa in their opening game of ICC World Cup 2019 in Southampton, Dhoni’s love for the armed forces was once again on display. The ace cricketer, who is playing in his fourth and final World Cup, donned gloves that bore the sign of the regimental dagger insignia of the Indian Para Special Forces.

The ‘Balidaan Badge’ was spotted on Dhoni’s gloves when he stumped South Africa’s Andile Phehlukwayo off the bowling of wrist-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal. It did not take much time for pictures of Dhoni’s gloves from going viral on social media. Respect came pouring in from various quarters for the man who won India their second World Cup in ODIs in 2011.

The symbol that Dhoni’s gloves bore, however, is sported only by paramilitary commandos and it signifies the validation of the slogan ‘Who Dares Wins’. The symbol has a commando dagger that points upwards with wings extending from the blade and a ‘Balidaan’ badge inscribed in Devanagiri.

ICC requests BCCI to get the gloves removed

However, Dhoni’s move did not go down well with the International Cricket Council (ICC) which has requested the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to ask the veteran wicket-keeper to remove the gloves. The ICC’s regulations do not allow “display of messages that relate to political, religious or racial activities or causes during an international match. We have requested the BCCI to get it removed” Timesnownews.com cited reports as quoting the ICC’s general manager, strategic communications.

Also during the Indian Premier League this year, Dhoni donated Rs 2 crore on behalf of his franchise Chennai Super Kings to the armed forces in the aftermath of the Pulwama attack.

Meanwhile, Dhoni also came up with a key 34 ball off 46 balls against the Proteas in the game to add 74 crucial runs with Rohit Sharma (122 not out) to secure a six-wicket victory.

Here are some of the reactions the fan came up after Dhoni donned the special gloves in the game against South Africa: