India vs Australia 2019: Will MS Dhoni be donning the Indian jersey for the last time at his home ground?
The favourite son of Indian soil, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, gets resounding applause wherever he visits his home town. He will get probably the biggest applause when he comes out to bat during the third ODI between India and Australia at his home ground Ranchi.
After all, they now call it the 'city of MS Dhoni'. But the question now is, is this Dhoni's last international match at Ranchi? A lot of people, including several former players, are assuming that Dhoni will retire after the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019.
However, those are just assumptions. There has been no declaration or confirmation yet.
There is no place in the country that Dhoni has not conquered with his charisma. He already has the second-highest number of dismissals as a wicket-keeper in international cricket. He will soon be the fifth highest run-scorer for India in international cricket too.
Most importantly, Dhoni's record as a captain is unparalleled. He has three ICC trophies in his cabinet. These achievements put him head and shoulders above the rest.
But Dhoni is beyond just numbers and statistics. People have scored more runs than him, but never enjoyed half the applause that he receives whenever he dons the India blues. More than a match-winner and one of the greatest to have graced the game of cricket, people know him as an inspiration and a selfless hero.
Send a youngster to a camp led by him, and that youngster will become a gem. When in crisis, go and pick his brain; the crisis will be solved in seconds. Whenever under pressure, go and look out for him and he will soak it all.
Dhoni is a true leader who always stands in front of his team during failures and humbly welcomes the critics. And when the success comes along, he gradually moves back and lets his team reap the rewards.
There's no doubt that Dhoni is a true gentleman of the game. That is why he is considered more than just a cricketer. He is the idol of millions of Indians. Besides making the game of cricket more beautiful, he has also managed to give bigger recognition to the city of Ranchi, the city where he belongs.
Dhoni has not event hinted at his possible retirement yet. He is as fit as anyone in the world, and now he is back in form and winning matches for India too.
Even if he plays for one more year though, the Ranchi crowd might still not be able to see him live. The city will have hosted one international already, and might not get another game in this season - as per the rotational policy of the BCCI.
However, in the IPL, there is every chance that Ranchi hosts a few games and Dhoni gets to play there.
Sourav Ganguly recently said that Dhoni can continue even after the World Cup if he's playing good cricket. Even Bhuvneshwar Kumar recently said that there is no reason why he will not play after the World Cup.
Dhoni has been in prolific form in 2019, scoring 304 runs at an average close to 100 in 7 innings thus far. He will be raring to go again in the 3rd ODI versus Australia at Ranchi, looking to hit a few balls into the stand named after him.
Who knows, Dhoni might pull out a surprise - as he often does - and continues playing beyond the World Cup. After all, he himself once said that the day he thinks he is not fit anymore, he will hang up his boots. But he is still supremely fit.
No needs to tell him that he needs retirement; he himself knows when is the right time to leave. He sacrificed his place in the Test side in 2014 to allow Virat Kohli to take over. He also gave up the limited overs captaincy in 2017. He does not demand a farewell, but only the betterment of his country.
The Ranchi people will be hoping that they get to see some helicopter shots in what may pan out as Dhoni's last ever international match in the city.