Anil Kumble wants a proper send-off for MS Dhoni; says selectors must think about his future

What’s the story?

Former Indian skipper, Anil Kumble feels that MS Dhoni must be given a proper send-off considering the latter's contributions to Indian cricket. The former Indian coach also reckons that selectors must sit down and think over Dhoni’s probable future with the Indian cricket team.

In case you didn’t know…

There have been speculations about Dhoni’s possible retirement ever since India’s semi-final exit in the 2019 World Cup. However, the wicket-keeper batsman hasn’t made any official announcement over his retirement from international cricket.

The Chennai Super Kings captain, who retired from Test cricket in 2015, made himself unavailable for selection for the limited-overs series against West Indies and the upcoming T20I home series against South Africa.

The heart of the matter…

With uncertainty over Dhoni’s future with the Indian team, Kumble believes that selectors must consider the younger crop of cricketers coming through the ranks. He stressed upon giving Dhoni a proper send-off before taking any call on his role with the team.

“I think Pant has made a lot of claims as a keeper-batsman, especially in the T20 format. So, it’s important to have a conversation and you need to have a proper send-off, he certainly deserves that,”

Kumble was of the view that Dhoni must be playing each T20 game if he’s eyeing the T20 World Cup next year in Australia.

“If the selectors believe that Dhoni is in the scheme of things for the T20 World Cup, then I think he should be playing every game”.

He also opined that it was time that the selectors discussed and made the decision in the next couple of months so that incumbent wicket-keeper batsman could be briefed clearly about his role in the team.

What’s next?

While we wait for any official statement from Dhoni or the team management, the rumours regarding one of India’s most prolific limited-overs batsmen continue to be to churned out in the cricketing fraternity.

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