It was as typical of the man himself. On Wednesday, MS Dhoni was watching his home side Jharkhand play in the Ranji Trophy semi-final against Gujarat in Nagpur. His team was in a strong position for a majority of the match, before being bundled out for 111 in the second innings and went on to lose.
If he felt disappointed by the result, he didn’t show it. Instead, he closed that chapter and set out for some batting practice, trying out various willows, in preparation for the limited-overs series against England beginning on January 15. He was his usual jovial self, taking selfies with fans and even journalists, whose work he claims he stopped reading long ago.
In the lead-up to this day, he didn’t seem to drop any hints, even to his team-mates – who also double up as PlayStation buddies – on his latest plan. Around 9 pm that night, the news broke, via a characteristically bland press release from the Board of Control for Cricket in India that Dhoni had stepped down as captain of India’s limited-overs teams with immediate effect, but would still be available as a player.
There is nothing terribly unusual about Dhoni dropping such bombshells. He has done it before. Most notably, when he abruptly retired from Test cricket midway through the Australia tour in 2014-’15. It was a decision that drove his successor Virat Kohli to break down in private, sensing the void it would create in the Test side, but he accepted the honour graciously. Nevertheless, it was the strongest indicator that Dhoni was looking to phase out his retirement as an international player. This time, the biggest hint that something was brewing was a long chat he had with chairman of selectors MSK Prasad on the sidelines of the Nagpur game.
The reactions to him quitting, from fans, journalists, players and ex-players – mostly on social media – have been understandably emotional. He has led India to three major limited-overs titles – the World Cup, World T20 and Champions Trophy – and thrilled fans with his cunning tactics. But it would have been unrealistic to expect him to continue as captain in the 2019 World Cup, when he will be 38. So, while the reactions may have been sentimental, it’s unlikely that his decision was an emotional one. Given the circumstances, it’s a pragmatic one.
Pragmatic decision
When he quit Tests, he stated the strain of playing all three formats as the reason, given his multiple roles as captain and first-choice wicketkeeper. It was time for Kohli to settle in to the job and groom another wicketkeeper to take over. But by stepping aside from Tests, Dhoni had to make a compromise by spending considerable time away from the Indian team.
Since January 2015, Dhoni has played 33 ODIs and 23 T20Is. In this phase, his presence was invaluable with the 2015 World Cup, the 2016 World T20 and the surfeit of T20Is prior to the tournament. In the middle of 2015, he was away from the unit for close to four months, during which he skipped a short limited-overs tour to Zimbabwe. India’s tour to Sri Lanka included only Tests. An equally long break beckoned the following year when India left for the West Indies for a Test-only tour. His break was reduced to two months when two T20Is were shoehorned in Florida late in the day.
Stepping in an out of the side after lengthy breaks is a challenge for any cricketer and it’s tougher if the said player is also the captain. He misses the pulse of the side when he’s away. These are the attendant challenges in a split-captaincy format, with the players answerable to multiple voices in the team management. Moreover, India’s bumper home season of 2016-’17 is not ideal for limited-overs specialists like Dhoni. Having seen out five Tests against England, he will be back for three ODIs and three T20Is against the Englishmen. Following that, another lengthy break of five Tests (four against Australia and one against Bangladesh) awaits before the IPL begins. His next international assignment will be in June for the Champions Trophy.
Team dynamics
It would be better for the sake of team dynamics to have one captain presiding through the entire phase, leaving Kohli as the most logical choice for a complete takeover. Surely, Dhoni would have observed Kohli’s maturity as a batsman and captain over the last two years before deciding the right time to hand over. Kohli has learned over seasons to suppress his emotions when the chips are down. His theatrics as captain for Royal Challengers Bangalore in previous IPL seasons were a world apart from Dhoni’s cool head, but Kohli to his credit has become more self-aware of his personality and responsibilities on the field. With Kohli enjoying the Test captaincy, this transition promises to be smooth.
One mouth-watering prospect, from the fans’ point of view, is the sight of Dhoni the batsman without the burden of captaincy. His abilities as a finisher were on the wane, prompting him to promote himself to No. 4 in the recent ODIs against New Zealand. He said the move freed up his mind, but will he remain in that position in order to groom a young finisher lower down the order? It’s a decision he will have to make. He will also no longer have to deal with questions on setting “defensive fields” or on his occasional conservative approach of using up too many deliveries before hitting during chases.
Dhoni signs off as India’s most successful one-day captain with 110 wins in 199 ODIs. Only Ricky Ponting (230) and Stephen Fleming (218) have captained in more games. His 110 wins are second behind Ponting (165). His 6,633 runs as wicketkeeper-captain in ODIs is a record, with Kumar Sangakkara a distant second with 1,756. He also holds the world record for the most wins as T20I captain – 41. Is there anything else left to achieve?
Kanishkaa Balachandran is a freelance writer based in Chennai.