“Dhoniiiii finishes off in style. A magnificent strike into the crowd. India lifts the World Cup after 28 years. The party’s started in the dressing room. And it’s an Indian captain, who’s been absolutely magnificent, in the night of the final.” these were the words that boomed into the microphone and in the television sets as Dhoni slammed that gigantic sixer to seal the fate of the World Cup. A night that started with a couple of initial hiccups for India changed into an era of delirious ecstasy for the entire Indian populace.
However, it has been a while since Dhoni was last seen in action as he called it a day in tests way back in 2015 and his last ODI appearance was in July 2019 in the World Cup semi-final where India went down fighting tooth and nail against a might Kiwi bowling line up.
Dhoni was recently seen in a video where he was walking down the lobby of a hotel, headed to gear up with his team for the imminent IPL. However, we all know that the tournament had to be held due to the Coronavirus crisis and the lockdown imposed by the prime minister and the respective states to contain this lethal flu.
This postponement has made a lot of fans ask about the appearance of Dhoni as we all know that the man who led India to the Promised Land in the T-20 World Cup and the ODI World Cup can still be an explosion. However, one needs to understand that urging Dhoni to come down the pike sooner than you expect him to be isn’t something that will give you all the entertainment that you are looking forward to.
Dear fans,
We all know what MS is capable of when he takes the field. Do you remember his last test match? Those eight dismissals effected by him flattened out Sangakkara’s record. Those dynamics that took bowlers by the scruff of their neck and dumped them out of the park with consummate ease? Those doldrums when he stepped out in the middle and played the anchor to an incredulous Indian victory? Yes, that is Dhoni for you. A leader who is capable of evoking the wildest reactions from you with every single feat that he performs is the same man who possesses nerves of steel even in the worst situations.
Do you believe that egging him on to come out early in the scene will really be an entertaining spectacle for you? Have you ever mulled about the fact that Dhoni is no longer the carnage-in-chief that he used to be? Free-flowing hair drawing a contrast to the magnificent cascades of the world and sixes flowing of his bat at an unrestrained pace is what embellished the Indian skipper. He now plays the perfect finisher and given the onus that his role demands of him, he is at his phenomenal best at where he is. He takes his time to get set and then he brings out the heavy artillery.
Probably he may even be considerate about playing selective matches in IPL as according to him, he will like to play the 2020 T-20 World Cup. Despite Rishab Pant’s meteoric rise to stardom, he is nowhere in the vicinity of Dhoni. When it comes to effecting quick and ingenious dismissals, the skipper is still unparalleled.
Now, I am pretty sure that you want it to be a Dhoni bonanza as this is probably going to be his last IPL, however, there is more to a player than his contractual obligations to a franchise. When the nation comes calling, no one has ever snubbed it down because of the pride and glory of donning on that blue jersey has its own essence.
This is an earnest request to all of you that please be patient. These are testing times and these won’t just pass. You may even have to wait for a year if this pandemic is failed to be contained. However, that shouldn’t really shear off your adulation and unreserved love for the skipper that you hold so dear.
As a very famous maxim cites that patience will bear fruits of the sweetest ilk, we would all request you to be patient. Dhoni will swing his blade again. It is just that the time is not ripe yet.
Military cut, those sharp eyes and the helicopter ripping out his bat will once again grace the stands but all of this will only be possible if you love him the exact same way and not flow away with the crowd to look for another hero in the lush green.
With love from another Dhoni fanatic.
