T20 World Cup 2021: 3 players who played in India's last match at the mega event but have retired now
Inaugural T20 World Cup winners India are among the favorites to win the ongoing mega event in the Middle East. The Men in Blue have got off to a perfect start in the UAE as they registered comprehensive victories against England and Australia in the warm-up phase of the competition.
For the first time in ICC T20 World Cup history, the Indian cricket team will be playing under the captaincy of Virat Kohli at the mega event. In all previous editions of the competition, Mahendra Singh Dhoni led the Men in Blue. This year Dhoni is playing the role of a mentor for India at the 2021 T20 World Cup.
India hosted the previous T20 World Cup, played in 2016, where they lost to the West Indies in the semifinals. Three players from the playing XI for that match against the Men in Maroon have bid farewell to the international arena now.
Here's a list of those three players.
#1 MS Dhoni
As mentioned ahead, MS Dhoni captained Team India in the ICC T20 World Cup tournaments played from 2007 to 2016. He led the team to the semifinals of the 2016 T20 World Cup at home.
Dhoni batted at number four in that game and played a decent cameo of 15 runs. The right-handed batter hit one boundary in his nine-ball knock and helped the Indian team finish the innings with a score of 192 runs on the board.
Unfortunately, the Indian bowlers could not defend that total. Many fans had expected Dhoni to play for India in the ICC T20 World Cup 2020. However, the tournament did not take place because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and on August 15, 2020, Dhoni called it a day on his international career.
#2 Suresh Raina
Suresh Raina did not get an opportunity to bat in his last T20 World Cup appearance for the Indian team. The hosts lost only two wickets in their semifinal match against the West Indies. Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, Virat Kohli and Dhoni were the four batters who batted that night.
Raina did not even get a chance to bowl. Perhaps MS Dhoni would not have given the ball to him because the pitch was not assisting the spinners. Both Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin had an economy rate of 10 or more in that game.
Raina retired from international cricket along with Dhoni on August 15, 2020.
#3 Ashish Nehra
Ashish Nehra was the only Indian bowler to bowl a decent spell in the T20 World Cup 2016 semifinal against the West Indies. The left-arm pacer conceded only 24 runs in his four overs and took the wicket of Marlon Samuels.
Nehra played T20I cricket for another year before deciding to retire in November 2017. The Indian fast bowler played his last T20I match against New Zealand in Delhi. He has tried his luck in coaching and commentary since retiring from international cricket.