MS Dhoni planning to establish cricket academy in Jammu & Kashmir to nurture young talent

According to reports, India's legendary wicket-keeper batsman Mahendra Singh Dhoni has expressed his desire to set up a cricket academy in the heavenly state of Jammu and Kashmir to help nurture budding cricketers. With a vision to provide contemporary world-class practice facilities to youngsters, veteran Dhoni is planning to formally consult the Sports Ministry of India regarding his future endeavour, where children from the state would be promoted to train for free and fulfil their cricketing aspirations.

Notably, the former India captain has already launched various cricketing academies and sports complexes in different parts of the world like United Arab Emirates, Singapore, Bihar, Noida, and Nagpur.

After an unfulfilled World Cup campaign where India shockingly eliminated in the semi-finals against New Zealand, speculations of retirement were making the rounds. Although, in an interesting sequence of events, the dynamic batsman requested the BCCI for a two-month break to serve in the army after making himself unavailable for team India's ongoing full-fledged tour of the West Indies. Meanwhile, in the absence of the ace cricketer, youngster Rishabh Pant was picked as a replacement across formats for the Carribean assignment.

The Jharkhand- born cricketer was severely criticized during India's unfulfilled World Cup campaign for his sluggish batsmanship and inability to effectively rotate the strike. Unable to characteristically put the innings into overdrive in trying circumstances, Dhoni concluded the showpiece tournament with 273 runs from eight games at an average of over 45 and a concerning strike rate of 87.78. Though it was presumed that India's ultimate fixture at the World Cup might be his last, the 37-year-old is yet to convey a statement regarding his international future.