Caption cool, Mahendra Singh Dhoni has finally revealed the reason behind his decision to step down as Indian cricket team’s captain.
Team India’s most successful captain, left the nation in shock when he resigned from captaincy in limited overs cricket. But now he has revealed that the decision was a well-thought one and was in the team’s interest.
‘I resigned from captaincy because I wanted the new captain (Virat Kohli) to get enough time for preparing a team before the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019,’ he said at a motivational event conducted by the Central Industrial Security Force at the Birsa Munda Airport in Ranchi, as per reports.
‘Selecting a strong team without giving the new captain appropriate time isn’t possible. I believe that I left the captaincy at the right time,’ Dhoni added.
Dhoni retired from Test cricket in December 2014. However, he stayed on as ODI and T20I captain after having taken on those roles in 2007.
Defending the Indian team after their 1-4 loss to England, he said, ‘ Indian team missed out on playing practices matches before the series, which is why the batsmen are finding it difficult to adjust. This is a part of game. We shouldn’t forget that India is currently No. 1 in the rankings.’
Dhoni has played 199 ODIs as Indian captain, of which he won 110 and lost 74 matches. Of 72 T20Is that he captained, India won 41 and lost 28. He was also India’s most successful Test captain, with 27 wins, 18 defeats and 15 draws.