India head coach Ravi Shastri has once again thrown his weight behind MS Dhoni and has asked not to push him into retirement early. Dhoni hasn’t played any form of cricket since the 2019 World Cup semi-final. He was to make his return to competitive cricket in IPL 2020 but with the league likely to be cancelled, questions regarding Dhoni’s future have come up once again.
While the former India skipper hasn’t commented on his career yet, Shastri did have a lot to say on Dhoni’s future. “Is Dhoni still good enough to get into the Indian side? It is as simple as that. That should apply for anyone across the board. What I have seen of Dhoni, I still think he has a huge amount to offer to Indian cricket. Yes, there have been one or two occasions where he has got it wrong in run chases, like that World Cup game against England. But in general, Dhoni is still a really good talent,” he said on Star Sports’ show Cricket Connected.
“And be careful what you wish for because once Dhoni is gone, there is no getting him back. There are some legends of the game who are once in a generation cricketers, don’t push him into retirement early. Only Dhoni knows his mental state and in the end selectors select,” Shastri added.
Dhoni was confirmed to take a short break after World Cup as he had a two-week stint with the Indian Army. He went on to miss the South Africa T20Is as well.
The former India captain was expected to return for Bangladesh T20Is but was unavailable for selection again. It was later confirmed that he would neither play the remainder of the home season nor he would travel to New Zealand.
