There's no question of any farewell match for Dhoni: Rajeev Shukla
New Delhi [India], Aug 16 (ANI): Rajeev Shukla, the former Indian Premier League (IPL) chairman on Sunday said that there is no question of a farewell match for Dhoni as the former skipper himself never asked for it.
His remark comes as Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren urged the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Saturday to host a farewell match for former skipper Dhoni, who announced his retirement from international cricket.
"Dhoni never expressed any will to the BCCI for a farewell match for him. Since he never raised it, there is no question of any such match," Shukla told ANI.
Dhoni, who was born and brought up in Ranchi, has played domestic cricket for the state (then in Bihar).
He had represented Bihar, East Zone, and Jharkhand in the domestic circuit. The 39-year-old played 131 first-class matches and scored 7,038 runs at an average of 36.84.
Dhoni had made his ODI debut in 2004 and since then, he changed the face of Indian cricket with his calm demeanour, sharp understanding of the game, and astute leadership qualities.
He is among the most successful captains in world cricket. It was under his leadership that India lifted the ICC Cricket World Cup in 2011 after having led India to triumph in the ICC World T20 in its maiden edition of the tournament held in 2007 in South Africa.
With India winning the ICC Champions Trophy in 2013 in England, Dhoni became the first and is still the only captain to date to have won all three ICC Trophies. While his heroics in the limited-overs formats are well documented, it was also under his leadership that India became the number one Test side in 2009 and the team stayed at the top for over 600 days.
He has led India to victory in 21 home Test matches, the most by an Indian captain. Leaving behind a rich legacy that will be difficult to replicate, Dhoni holds the record for most international matches as captain (332).
Unarguably the quickest man behind the wicket, Dhoni has 195 international stumpings, the most by any wicket-keeper.
Dhoni played 350 ODIs and scored 10,773 runs with the highest score of 183* against Sri Lanka. In 98 T20Is, he amassed 1617 runs at an average of 37.60.
Also referred to as 'Captain Cool', Dhoni is known for his calmness and exquisite captaincy on the field. He was also known for his knack of opting for reviews and many have jokingly remarked to change the 'Decision-Review System's' name to 'Dhoni-Review System'.
In December 2014, he announced his retirement from Test cricket and gave a chance to the likes of Wriddhiman Saha. Dhoni called time on his Test career after playing 90 Tests, managing to score 4,876 runs at an average of 38.09.
Dhoni was slated to return to the cricket field on March 29 during the IPL's opening match between CSK and Mumbai Indians.
However, the tournament will now be played in the UAE from September 19 to November 10. He will continue as CSK's captain in the IPL 2020. (ANI)
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