"Player of Dhoni's stature should've retired on the ground, not while sitting at home": Inzamam 

The former Pakistan skipper paid tribute to India's most successful captain.

By Kashish Chadha - 17 Aug, 2020

An Instagram post containing a four-minute clip featuring his favourite song, "Mein pal do pal ka shayar hun..", adorned by the pictures of highs and lows from his career, captioned "from 1929 hrs consider me as retired" is, yes, believe it or not, how MS Dhoni brought end to one of the most celebrated international careers in the history of the game.

Even for those who had gotten used to his absence from the scene in the last one year, this was a poignant moment, curtains to one of the most significant periods in Indian cricket. Dhoni was an era in himself. 

Read Also: Former India wicketkeepers name their ideal replacement to MS Dhoni 

Former Pakistan captain Inzamam-Ul-Haq, however, thinks it would've been even better had Dhoni played his last match for India and bid farewell while on the field and not from home. 

Speaking on his Youtube Channel, 'Inzamam ul Haq – The Match Winner', he wished Dhoni well but said there was something left to be desired. 

"Dhoni has millions of fan across the globe who want to see him play on the ground. In my opinion a player of such stature, shouldn’t have taken retirement while sitting at home. He should have announced retirement from the ground," Inzamam said. 

"This is the same thing, I once told Sachin Tendulkar. When you have such a big fanfare, you should ideally end your journey from the ground, after all it is this ground where you earned such respect and stardom."

"In my opinion, even Dhoni should have done the same then his fans would have been more happy, including me since I rate him as the best Indian skipper," he added. 

Inzamam hailed Dhoni the all-round cricketer, excellent with the bat, gloves and as a tactician of the game, which was evident when he captained India to three major titles and the No.1 tag in the ICC Test rankings. 

"MS Dhoni is such a clever cricketer that he knew how to built players. Suresh Raina and R Ashwin are two best players, MS Dhoni produced.”

"His level of understanding of the sport was so good that he used to pick players and then turn them into great players."

Specifically as a limited-overs maverick with the bat, Inzamam feels Dhoni is right up there among the best that the game has seen. 

"He is that player who knew how to finish the match. He is not the kind who will score a century in every match, but he built his innings in such a manner that the team finishes on the winning side."

“Single-handedly, he could win matches. For example the 2011 World Cup, he came to bat at the No 4 position reflected the amount of confidence he carried with himself," added Inzamam who saw Dhoni from close quarters stealing even the Pakistani hearts through his amazing power-hitting on that 2006 tour across the border. 

By Kashish Chadha - 17 Aug, 2020

TAGS