[Watch] When MS Dhoni scored a fifty in a heartbreaking loss during his final innings in international cricket
Today marks the fourth anniversary of MS Dhoni's final appearance in international cricket. It came during the first semi-final of the 2019 ICC ODI World Cup between India and New Zealand on July 10 at the Emirates Old Trafford in Manchester.
The match went on for two days due to rain interruption on the scheduled day. New Zealand batted first in the contest and managed to reach 239/8 in 50 overs. Senior batters Ross Taylor (74) and Kane Williamson (67) hit half-centuries to help the Kiwis to a respectable total. Bhuvneshwar Kumar picked up three wickets for India, while all the other four bowlers scalped one wicket apiece.
In reply, Team India got off to a disastrous start. Utilizing the swinging conditions on offer, Matt Henry and Trent Boult combined to reduce the Men in Blue to 5/3 in 3.1 overs. All the top-3 batters Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, and Virat Kohli were back in the hut after scoring one run each in the knockout game.
Dinesh Karthik (six in 25 balls) also reached the pavilion after a painful innings, leaving India tottering at 24/4 in 10 overs. Rishabh Pant (32) and Hardik Pandya (32) built a little partnership for a while. It could not develop into a substantial one as Pant perished in the 23rd over, trying to hit a big shot against left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner.
MS Dhoni arrived at the crease after the fall of the wicket of his protege. He played watchfully and tried to take the game deep like he has done numerous times across his storied ODI career. Hardik Pandya was also back in the pavilion soon after in an identical fashion to Pant.
Joining hands at 92/2 after 30.3 overs, Ravindra Jadeja (77 in 57 balls) and MS Dhoni (50 in 71 balls) stitched a magnificent 116-run partnership for the seventh wicket and kept India's hopes alive in the chase of 240.
Jadeja looked in sublime touch and played one of his best international knocks in the match. He remained calm and composed in the high-pressure situation when India were in neck-deep trouble in the chase and almost single-handedly shouldered the burden of scoring briskly to keep his side in the hunt.
MS Dhoni played the perfect foil and kept turning over the strike to him. Trent Boult dismissed Jadeja in the 48th over to give New Zealand a massive breakthrough. The onus was completely on MS Dhoni to provide a massive finish, as India needed 32 runs from the last 13 balls.
Dhoni could not conjure any magic as he got run out three balls later, much to the disappointment of billions of fans. India went on to lose the match by 18 runs and got eliminated from the World Cup.
You can watch the final delivery of MS Dhoni's international innings below:
This was the last appearance for MS Dhoni in Indian colors.
Dhoni's innings was ended by Martin Guptill's brilliant throw from the boundary.
Dhoni scored 50 runs in his last match for India.
#OnThisDay in 2019.
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MS Dhoni announced his retirement from international cricket on August 15, 2020. However, he is still participating in the IPL and won the trophy for the Chennai Super Kings in 2021 and 2023 since his international retirement.