MS Dhoni Retires from Test Cricket, Kohli to Lead in Sydney Test – 31st Dec

Mahendra Singh Dhoni has quit Test cricket after announcing his retirement from the format with immediate effect which followed the Boxing Day Test in Australia where India lost the series. As a result, top order batsman Virat Kohli will be handed the captaincy for the Sydney Test. Dhoni’s retirement come out of the blue since it was only an hour after he was 24 not out and called the Test off early with only four overs remaining.

In addition to that, Dhoni did not make any mention of retirement during the captain’s press conference at the conclusion of the match and it was only revealed to all he had in fact retired through a BCCI press release that revealed Dhoni was struggling to manage all formats of the game.

“One of India’s greatest Test captains under whose leadership India became the No. 1 team in the test rankings, MS Dhoni, has decided to retire from Test cricket citing the strain of playing all formats of cricket,” the board said. “BCCI, while respecting the decision of MS Dhoni to retire from Test cricket, wishes to thank him for his enormous contribution to Test cricket and the laurels that he has brought to India. Virat Kohli will be the captain of the Indian team for the fourth and final Test against Australia to be played in Sydney.”

Dhoni has had many fitness issues in recent months which has lead to him missing five ODIs against Sri Lanka in November due to a hand injury which then ruled out him out of the opening Test against Australia in Adelaide. MS Dhoni was India’s busiest cricketer prior to his Test retirement with him having to play an extraordinary amount of matches across international and domestic Twenty20 competitions since 2008 with Dhoni playing 398 matches. The next highest is Suresh Raina who has played 369 games since then.

Dhoni’s place in the India Test team has not been doubted but his form has definitely dropped in 2014 with the bat and the gloves where he has averaged 33 in 17 innings which is still very good by a wicketkeeper’s standards. His captaincy certainly has been criticised in Test cricket with India only winning two away Tests out of 22 away Tests where they have lost 13 since 2011 under Dhoni’s leadership.

Dhoni played 90 Tests in a Test career that began in 2005 where he managed to collect 294 dismissals, which is the fifth highest in Test cricket. He has been known for his flair when it comes to his batting and he managed 4876 runs at an average of 38. His retirement will allow him to focus more on the shorter formats of the game where he has been so destructive.