MS Dhoni played FIFA fifteen minutes after announcing his decision to step down as Limited Overs captain

A day just like any other for MS Dhoni

What’s the story?

For a man who has done almost everything for Indian cricket, MS Dhoni remarkably is an isolated figure. Probably his contribution to Indian cricket would be to bring back the game to the level of sports.

For a nation which regards the sport as a religion, Dhoni almost dragged it back and made it a game, once again, where victories and defeats would all be a part. The man would seldom react when he won matches, and would seldom be flustered when he stared at defeats. 

Thus, when he decided to step down as the Limited Overs captain, he did it his own way.

The BCCI released an advisory informing the cricketing world of the decision. The man himself was locked in a room with his Jharkhand teammates and spoke to them about their stellar run in the ongoing Ranji Trophy. Jharkhand made their first ever semi-finals but were toppled by an inspired Jasprit Bumrah-spell. 

However, Dhoni spoke to them and reminisced on the many highs and few lows encountered by a young promising team right throughout the tournament.

And then as the world was still coming to grips with the colossal decision, a non-flustered Dhoni made his way into a room and starting fiddling with the Playstation and challenged his young Jharkhand teammates for a game of FIFA.

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In a way, it is symbolic of the man, who just makes a decision and then lives with it without giving too much thought to the repercussions. He decided to step down as a captain and then moved on without bothering about the reactions. For him, it was just another routine day. 

After the game, he invited the team to a dinner and when he walked out he seemed as cool as one could imagine. The decision had been made, it was only a routine affair for the man who was now looking forward to a life without the extra responsibility of leading the side. His day would not be dictated by this decision, and he would lead it as he wanted!

There is still no clarity over this sudden bombshell, but such is the enigma of the man, that we have come to expect this from him. This is so similar to the announcement made when he decided to quit Test cricket. 

Sportskeeda’s Take

If there is Dhoni, there is bound to a shock factor, but for the Ranchi-boy, it is all just part of the process. He was training in Nagpur, and there were no indications that he was mulling this huge step. He has always maintained that he would step aside when he feels the time is right, and there is someone who is more suited to the job. Probably the time has come, we would never know, but then he knew!

There is no denying the fact over the last 15 months, his prowess with the bat has seen a gradual decline, and Virat Kohli has imposed himself on the team with intent. This team is more Kohli’s than Dhoni. He knew it, and he stepped aside without having to be pushed to the brink.

“Well, of course it is, MS”!