MS Dhoni movie trailer: Who are the three players Dhoni felt didn't fit in the team?

MS Dhoni with Sushant Singh Rajput

The trailer of MS Dhoni’s much-anticipated biopic is finally out, and is getting positive responses from all quarters. Slated for a September 30 release, the film portrays Dhoni’s journey from a ticket collector in the Indian Railways to a World-Cup winning captain. By the looks of it, the actor, Sushant Singh Rajput, has imbibed Dhoni’s mannerisms and expressions to the hilt. 

The trailer shows a glimpse of the movie’s storyline that captures the Jharkhand-born wicketkeeper’s journey from a small town to the towering heights of world cricket.

Although the former Indian Test captain stayed clear of any major controversies throughout his career, he had a fair share of detractors who questioned his unconventional approach and affinity for persisting with players despite bad form. As a captain, Dhoni lay his hands on all major ICC trophies, but some people questioned the way he handled some of the senior players on his way to shape a young team.

Towards the end of the recently released trailer, Dhoni is shown having a video call with the selectors, and explaining how three particular players wouldn’t fit in the ODI team. The selectors are then shown discussing amongst themselves how those who promoted Dhoni are now getting the stick from him. One of the other selectors then follows it up by saying that Dhoni won’t stop at this, and will carry on in the same vein. Dhoni replies back in the same calm demeanour he is known for, stating that “We are all servants and we are all doing national duty”.

The trailer doesn’t mention any names, but it can be noted that the non-selection of Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly did not go down too well with many people, especially because Dhoni had made his debut under Sourav Ganguly, and turned into a match-winner under the guidance of Rahul Dravid. 

It has to be noted that Sourav Ganguly was a notable omission from the ODI series in Australia in 2008, and Rahul Dravid wasn’t given a chance either. Ganguly didn’t feature in ODIs again, and retired from international cricket in late-2008. Dravid made sporadic appearances in the ODI team, and eventually retired from limited-overs after the 2011 England series. 

Dhoni was also under the question mark when the likes of Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir and Sachin Tendulkar were not part of the starting XI together in all games of the 2012 CB series, as the think-tank opted for a rotation policy for the seniors.

However, Virender Sehwag has been clear in the past that Dhoni was not the reason behind his ouster from the Indian team. 

Does the movie talk about either of these two incidents? Nothing can be sure until the release of the movie.