Peerless skipper, keeper and finisher

India’s Captain Cool chose lyricist Sahir to underline his surprise sign-off, but Dhoni’s game was more robust prose than lilting poetry

- Saibal Chatterjee

Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the most successful captain in the history of Indian cricket, opted for a Sahir Ludhianvi lyric about the transience of fame and adulation as accompaniment for his retirement announcement. But his game wasn’t poetry. It was enigmatic, elegant and excitingly effectual prose. Dhoni’s brand of cricket was more about natural rhythm than measured lilt.

“Consider me as (sic) Retired”: that is as cryptic an announcement as any a sportsman can make. In the middle of a pandemic, Dhoni chose Instagram – a social media platform that is at once personal and distant, shielded from the cacophony of obtrusive, privacy-denting tweets – to let the world know that he was ending his international career on India’s 74th Independence Day.

The move came following months of speculation over the future of the 39-year-old wicket keeper-batsman. Over a period of 15 eventful years, he stamped his class on the sport in no uncertain manner, bringing exemplary sangfroid to the table. He shouldered multiple responsibilities – a leader of men, a wicket-keeper, a middle order batsman, a finisher in limited-overs cricket and an ambassador of the sport – with equanimity.

Blessed with keen cricketing head, Dhoni punctuated intelligent pacing of an innings with calculated aggression, which made him one of the greatest-ever finishers of an ODI game. Backed by fabulous bat swing and strong arms, his sixes were massive.