Mahendra Singh Dhoni didn’t find a place in the list of 27 contracted players named by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Thursday.
Dhoni’s omission has triggered a fresh round of speculation about the former captain’s future with the India team. Is it the end of the road for the man who led India to two world titles? Or will he still manage make a comeback just in time before the T20 World Cup in October?
For the record, in 2019, Dhoni had been awarded a Grade A contract.
Technically speaking, the Board’s move doesn’t come as a surprise since Dhoni has not been playing international cricket since the ODI World Cup in England last year. As an influential person in the BCCI put it: “How do you give a contract to a person who hasn’t played for the national team for the last seven months?”
A former India captain, who spoke to The Telegraph on condition of anonymity, said: “He hasn’t played since the World Cup. It is expected. I am not surprised.”
But then, Dhoni is Dhoni. The man is such a big and important chapter of Indian cricket that one can argue that an exception could have been made for him. That BCCI didn’t walk that path points to two things, a source said.
First, the source said, it proves that the influence Narayanswami Srinivasan once wielded in the BCCI’s corridors is on the wane. “If Srinivasan could do anything about it, Dhoni would have got a central contract no matter how much cricket he has played in the last six-seven months. But Srinivasan’s grip on the Board has loosened considerably,” a top Board official said.
Srinivasan’s fondness for Dhoni is no secret. The Ranchi man is a darling of Chennai because of his hugely successful stint with the Chennai Super Kings, an IPL franchise with which Srinivasan is associated.
Second, it is also a strong indication that the BCCI doesn’t see Dhoni back in the India team anytime in the future. True, Dhoni hasn’t yet retired from the limited-overs formats and so the doors for a comeback are not closed. But it is unlikely that the Board is thinking of such a possibility.
To quote a former India player who didn’t wish to be named: “It’s the end of Dhoni. I don’t think he can make a return. I think it’s time to look at someone else. He has achieved so much for the country, what more do you expect him to do?”