On August 15, the legendary Indian cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni left everyone surprised and heartbroken after he announced his retirement from the international cricket. While the fans are still trying to absorb the news of Dhoni’s retirement, seems kike the cricketers are also left heartbroken.
Well, recently, KL Rahul, who will now try to cement his spot as a wicket-keeper batsman in limited formats for team India after the retirement of Dhoni, expressed that the news of MS Dhoni’s retirement was heartbreaking and quite shocking. He also said that the team wanted to give a grand send-off to the legendary cricketer. He said:
“It was quite shocking. I was honestly heartbroken. I’m sure all of us in the team or whoever has played under him and with him would have wanted to give him a big send-off and wanted him to play one more time so we could have had that opportunity to do something special for him. It is what it is,”
Rahul also expressed how MS Dhoni has always guided the youngsters in the team. He also revealed how they used to go to MS Dhoni, whenever they were in doubt.
“He has been someone who has guided us all really, really well. And who has never expected us to change who we are. He has let us go out there and express ourselves and make our mistakes and learn from them. He has just let us be.”
He added:
“If we were ever in doubt, or if we wanted to look to somebody for answers, he was always there. He knew when to push the players,”
KL Rahul revealed how he was at a loss of words while writing a tribute for MS Dhoni when he announced his retirement. Calling his impact in team India as ‘phenomenal’, KL Rahul said:
“Words fall short, man. Even the other day when I was trying (to write on Dhoni retiring) on Instagram or Twitter… I mean, what do you say about somebody like that? You don’t have enough to say about how much he has done and how many lives he has changed and for how many people he is an inspiration – not just on the field but off the field [as well] with the things he has achieved. It is phenomenal,”
When asked about MS Dhoni’s captaincy, KL Rahul revealed that he has always idolized Dhoni when it comes to captaincy. He also praises Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli for their captaincy skills. He said:
“It has always been MS Dhoni. I’m grateful that I’ve had the honour of playing under him and with him. Even Rohit [Sharma] is quite a good captain. Virat [Kohli] is a phenomenal captain. I have learned a lot from all of them and hopefully I can use all of that knowledge when I am captaining,”
Meanwhile, KL Rahul will be seen playing for Kings XI Punjab in the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League, which will kickstart from September 19th in UAE. This edition of the IPL will be first major IPL for KL Rahul as he will be leading the Kings XI Punjab.
