Cricket fans in India have been jolted with the news of the retirement of former Indian Cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni from international cricket earlier this week. The ‘Captain Cool’ shared the news on his social media, with a video message capturing all the memorable moments in his cricketing career with a message announcing his retirement. For millions of cricket aspirants and fans, the announcement came in as a disappointment, as they would have liked to see him play for the next World Cup as well.
For several young cricketers and enthusiasts in Vizag, MSD is one of the reasons why they chose to be professional cricketers. Not just his performance on the field, but the way he conducted himself in real life has been a lesson for life, says Ricky Bhui, Under-19 cricketer from Vizag. “While the cricketing community has been anticipating Captain Dhoni’s retirement, I didn’t think it would come this early. That was disappointing, but I guess he wanted to take on a mentoring role for the youngsters going forward.” The young right-handed batsman and former Sunrisers Hyderabad player, has fond memories of interacting with the captain. “The moments I interacted with Dhoni will always be memorable to me. He never made us feel like he was a hot-shot, his humility in real life is something I want to imbibe in real life,” says Ricky.
For some others, Dhoni’s leadership skills are something they hope to incorporate in their daily life. “At any point in the match, he clearly had a plan for what’s coming ahead in the game. Second, the never give up attitude! MS Dhoni is someone that I’ve always look up to for breezing through tough moments,” says Pavan Tulsija, Management Trainee at Pidilite Industries and cricket enthusiast from Vizag.
While MS Dhoni will be dearly missed after the retirement, he left us with some important life lessons, opines Kona Srikar Bharat, Keeper Batsman on the Indian team, and a local of Vizag. “We must accept and support that Dhoni had his days, and he chose to retire, which is also an important aspect of his career. His skill got him success, but his mindset and how he treated others kept him there. That’s something I hope to imbibe in my cricketing career too,” says the young player.
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