Dhoni - finest moments in tests

[maniac]

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:cantstop: As much as I dislike this hype around Dhoni the mastermind captain cool,I will kinda miss Dhoni the player....Saha and co don't inspire any confidence so far and don't know if it is entirely Dhoni's fault or insecurity,I don't see a succesor groomed to take over the WK-Bat role. Instead of keeping wickets with the likes of Uthappa etc. atleast in pointless ODI's or T20's a keeper should have played more often

[Austin 3:!6]

Apart from all his finest moments everyone has put together in this thread, I want to mention one more incident which is very close to my heart. Allowing Ganguly to lead the team one last time in the final moments of his last test. That was a fantastic gesture which just goes on to show what a humble and respectful human being he is. With Sachin, VVS, Dravid retired and now with Dhoni gone, I am afraid we have seen the last of 'Gentleman cricketers' playing for India. An era come to an end. Now with hot headed players like Kohli, Rohit, Ishant, Dhawan etc. we will only see aggression. How fruitful it will be time will tell.

[Austin 3:!6]

Sums up his (and BCCI's) attitude towards humiliating losses in overseas Tests in the last few years.

To be honest, Dhoni was unlucky to have lead so many back to back tough overseas tours. Not giving an excuse here but no Indian captain (or any captain for that matter) had their team on road for such a long period. Who knows what Azharuddin or Ganguly would have achieved if they had to play 15 months of non stop cricket in alien conditions. We can only speculate but to single him out only for poor overseas performance is not correct. Dhoni already a better test skipper than anyone in Subcontinent conditions. His records simply cant be ignored.

[maniac]

To be honest, Dhoni was unlucky to have lead so many back to back tough overseas tours. Not giving an excuse here but no Indian captain (or any captain for that matter) had their team on road for such a long period. Who knows what Azharuddin or Ganguly would have achieved if they had to play 15 months of non stop cricket in alien conditions. We can only speculate but to single him out only for poor overseas performance is not correct. Dhoni already a better test skipper than anyone in Subcontinent conditions. His records simply cant be ignored.

What happened in the home series against England?

[Sachin=GOD]

To be honest' date=' Dhoni was unlucky to have lead so many back to back tough overseas tours. [b']Not giving an excuse here but no Indian captain (or any captain for that matter) had their team on road for such a long period. Who knows what Azharuddin or Ganguly would have achieved if they had to play 15 months of non stop cricket in alien conditions. We can only speculate but to single him out only for poor overseas performance is not correct. Dhoni already a better test skipper than anyone in Subcontinent conditions. His records simply cant be ignored.

He could have stepped down himself if he thought he was not upto the mark to captain the team for 15 months of non stop cricket in alien conditions.

[The Outsider]

Has the best Win% amongst all Asian test captains. Won 21 out of 30 games he captained in India. Its only overseas he struggles but to say he has negligible achievements in test cricket is laughable.

Play this statistics game with people who don't understand cricket. I admit I was slightly harsh on him, and have genuine admiration for his 8-2 field and double hundred. It's too washed down by his lambi list of disasters.

[Austin 3:!6]

What happened in the home series against England?

Talking about overall. So is he not suppose to lose any game in India? I repeat his stats again: In India he has Captained 30 tests Won 23 times Only lost 3 test matches in home 2 vs Eng in 2012 1 vs SA in Nagpur That is legendary stats.

[Gambit]

Another key moment of his captaincy was recalling Ian Bell. Whether right or wrong, that was a pivotal moment.

[rkt.india]

:cantstop: As much as I dislike this hype around Dhoni the mastermind captain cool,I will kinda miss Dhoni the player....Saha and co don't inspire any confidence so far and don't know if it is entirely Dhoni's fault or insecurity,I don't see a succesor groomed to take over the WK-Bat role. Instead of keeping wickets with the likes of Uthappa etc. atleast in pointless ODI's or T20's a keeper should have played more often

Dhoni too has never inspired confidence as a test batsman since Australia 2007-08. I used to have a lot of confidence in his test batting before that.

[Texan]

He played some fine innings and we might struggle to find another wicket-keeper who can bat as well as he did. But, I still felt that Dhoni was capable of a better Test record than what he eventually finished with. Had he played his natural attacking game the way he plays in ODIs, I think he could have scored some more 100s especially away from home.

[rkt.india]

The cricket world reacts to MS Dhoni's retirement from Test cricket http://www.espncricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/814987.html

[rkt.india]

'Dhoni calmly told me, I want to quit Test cricket' - BCCI secretary Despite the news of MS Dhoni's retirement from Test cricket coming out of the blue following the end of the MCG Test, BCCI secretary Sanjay Patel said it wasn't a decision the India captain had made in haste. Patel revealed Dhoni phoned him soon after the conclusion of the drawn Test in Melbourne to convey the news. "MS is a very practical man. Today, he called up just after the Test match in Melbourne and told me that he wanted to retire from Test cricket," Patel told PTI. "I asked him, 'What happened are you injured or what?' He just calmly told me, 'No, I just want to quit Test cricket for good.' He is an Indian captain and a distinguished cricketer. It's his personal choice and I needed to respect that. "I asked him, 'Is it your final decision,' and he told me, 'Please wait a bit as I want to inform the boys about my decision and then you can make an official announcement.' He duly called up and told me that I have informed the boys and you can go ahead. In the meanwhile, I also contacted chairman of selectors Sandeep (Patil) and Shivlal Yadav. Both felt that we should respect Dhoni's decision. "I was a bit taken aback by the suddenness of his statement. But we had spoken about it before the Test also. Now what transpired between us is an internal matter but I can tell you that it wasn't a decision taken in haste. It was done after due deliberations." When asked whether Dhoni was emotional during the phone conversation, Patel said, "I didn't feel that. But someone, who was present in the dressing room told me that he (Dhoni) was a bit emotional while announcing his decision. He has given fantastic service to Indian cricket and the BCCI has always believed that retirement is any player's personal choice. "You have to understand that Dhoni knows the rigours that his body has taken in Test cricket more than anyone else. But there isn't a single murmur about his leadership in the shorter formats. There is no question of any change in that regard." © ESPN Sports Media Ltd.

http://www.espncricinfo.com/australia-v-india-2014-15/content/story/815107.html

[rkt.india]

No sentimental farewell for a practical man There will be no farewell Test for India's most successful Test captain, most successful wicketkeeper and most prolific keeper-batsman. No home series will be sold at exorbitant prices. No home association will be allowed to exploit the moment. There won't be farewell speeches. There wasn't even a farewell press conference. Without any fanfare, 44 minutes after MS Dhoni had finished his press conference post the Boxing Day Test, the BCCI sent a press release with the news. An hour after India had managed to draw an away Test, the first time in the last 14 Australia-India Tests that a team hasn't lost away from home. In the middle of a series. Just like that. This was vintage Dhoni. Indian cricket's biggest outsider. India's most practical cricketer. He cared, we know, but not for numbers. He was 10 short of a 100 Tests, a landmark only 10 other Indians have reached. Nobody would have dropped him. We know what happened the last time a selector wanted to. He could have easily gone on. He could have easily rolled on for another Test or ruled himself out of the next one, and made the big announcement after the World Cup; there is a long way to go before India play a Test after this series. But that's not Dhoni. Remember what he told us when asked to compare the two whitewashes in 2011 and 2011-12: you die, you die; you don't see which is a better way to die. You end your Test career, you end your Test career. You don't see which is a better way to end your Test career. We all knew he would end it all one fine day without anyone knowing it. We knew he would just vanish. Boom. Gone. Off to the army or the air force or with his dogs or his bikes. He has never liked personal goals coming in the way of the team. He wouldn't have wanted the farewell to take the focus away from the actual cricket. He loves the game, but he is also detached from the other paraphernalia. He always gave you the impression this wasn't the life he loved or craved; this was just a job that was his responsibility for whatever few years he had. He managed the task of being the India captain while being an immensely private person. He was never going to make leaving an emotional act. All his cricketing life he has been obsessed with keeping the emotion out of it. He was not going to let it infiltrate his final Test. We can use hindsight and look for signs all we want. Those two dives to his right to take catches on the fourth day. These are the ones he is infamous for not attempting. Was he teasing us? Telling us he could do it all along. Was he just freer in his mind, now not worried about injuring himself when going for those catches? The stump he took with him while walking back after securing the draw. But stumps he usually takes, even from inconsequential ODIs. Talking and laughing with David Warner when walking back. Did he know this was it? Was he relieved? Was he wistful? He'll never really let you know. We all knew he would end it all one fine day without anyone knowing it. We knew he would just vanish We all knew he would end it all one fine day without anyone knowing it. We knew he would just vanish © Getty Images If Dhoni knew then that he was done, he didn't let it show. He did a normal post-match presentation interview, and came in for a normal press conference, where he was more statesmanlike than Virat Kohli, David Warner and Steven Smith have been. He saw Australia back off, wary of India's batting from the Adelaide chase, and painstakingly bat India out of the game before giving themselves too few overs to bowl the visitors out. Kohli would have driven in the screw in the press conference. Dhoni said he could give a spicy reply, but it wouldn't be right for him to analyse the opposition's moves in a press conference. Asked if he was surprised by Australia shaking hands four overs before the scheduled end, Dhoni said he was ready to bat four more overs. "I had batted so long, could have batted more. Now that's an Aussie answer." And everybody laughed. He had some charm in these matters. The relations between the two teams in this series have been acrimonious. Dhoni says he believes the cricketers shouldn't behave in a manner they wouldn't want the kids to see. Some of the player behaviour in the series has not been appropriate for kids' viewing. He made the first mature comments about it. He said he has told his team-mates that abusing the opponents is unacceptable. He said he has even told the umpires to let him know if his players are up to no good, that appropriate action will be taken should that be the case. He asked for more tolerance and understanding from both sides should a player stray in the heat of the moment on the odd occasion. Dhoni patiently explained why he promoted KL Rahul, keeping Cheteshwar Pujara as a fail-safe should some blocking be required. He also felt this would be a good test for Rahul, who he said had been batting well in the nets. Most importantly he said Rahul shouldn't be judged based on one Test alone. Dhoni doesn't seem the kind who frets over legacy, but that is his biggest legacy: that players got a decent run under him. Had he been as impatient with Kohli as the rest of the world had been on the previous tour of Australia, a replacement for Dhoni would not have been ready. Now it is not for Dhoni to decide if Rahul should be judged based on this one Test or not. Just like Dhoni did from Anil Kumble, in the middle of another series against Australia, Kohli has taken over. It is his team to take forward. Our last real link with the recent golden era of Indian Test cricketers is gone. He has left us with a quote that can be added to the Big Fat Book of Dhoni Analogies. He was asked what is the solution for the disparity between India's Doberman-like and Australia's Hanuman-like tails. This was right up Dhoni's alley. "Now even PETA has said you can't cosmetically remove the tail." Batting out 39 nervous balls to save the match is not a bad last act at all, but beat that for last official words spoken as a Test captain.

http://www.espncricinfo.com/australia-v-india-2014-15/content/story/815119.html

[diga]

http://www.espncricinfo.com/australia-v-india-2014-15/content/story/815107.html"I was a bit taken aback by the suddenness of his statement. But we had spoken about it before the Test also. Now what transpired between us is an internal matter but I can tell you that it wasn't a decision taken in haste. It was done after due deliberations."

that means there was discussion between the board/selectors/dhoni on his test future

[zep1706]

that means there was discussion between the board/selectors/dhoni on his test future

That was a big giveaway, probably unintended too. So it is now clear that they did discuss his future as the test captain. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[rkt.india]

that means there was discussion between the board/selectors/dhoni on his test future

which puts full stop to all the conspiracy theories.

[Sidhoni]

Hilarious remarks from behind the stumps

[sscomp32]

Hilarious remarks from behind the stumps

:two_thumbs_up: The best i remember one was "Oye Sree Wahan Girlfriend nahi hai" :rofl: Ghanti ko Leke Jayenge :rofl: