Ruturaj Gaikwad shares CSK dressing room scenes after MS Dhoni's retirement announcement last year
MS Dhoni sent shock waves across the Indian and world cricket scene when he abruptly announced his retirement from international cricket on August 15, 2020, while preparing for the IPL 2020 in Chennai. His Chennai Super Kings (CSK) teammate Ruturaj Gaikwad revealed the vibe in the dressing room after Dhoni’s announcement.
MS Dhoni had not played for India since their loss in the semi-final of the 2019 World Cup in which Dhoni scored 50 runs. Many felt that he was taking time off and would use the IPL 2020 to make a case for his selection for the T20 World Cup which was supposed to be held in Australia in 2020.
Ruturaj Gaikwad, MS Dhoni. Image-Twitter
However with the COVID-19 pandemic raging in the world, all those plans were washed away and the T20 World Cup was postponed to 2021 and possibly this played a role in MS Dhoni’s decision to retire from international cricket, an announcement he made via a video on Instagram.
We All Were Having Dinner When Someone Announced That MS Dhoni Had Announced Retirement From Indian Cricket, It Took 2-3 Days For It To Sink In: Ruturaj Gaikwad
Ruturaj Gaikwad had been picked by the Chennai Super Kings in the IPL 2020 auction and was eager to play in the IPL for the first time. He was with Dhoni, Suresh Raina, and some other players in a camp organized in Chennai when Dhoni dropped the bombshell of his retirement.
He said that no one had an inkling that MS Dhoni was going to announce his retirement.
“I don’t have any idea about that (if MS Dhoni will retire before next year’s IPL). Because I remember he announced his [international] retirement on 15th August last year. On that day, we were 10-12 people in Chennai practicing just before leaving Dubai. Around 6:30 pm our practice got over and at 7:00 we all, including Mahi bhai, sat for dinner.
And suddenly someone told me on Instagram that Mahi bhai had announced his retirement! There was no vibe that something like that was going to happen, no discussions, no one knew anything at all. So, you never know with him. Anything can happen,” Ruturaj Gaikwad told India TV.
The Maharashtra opener added that it took 2-3 days to realize that they were no longer going to see MS Dhoni wear the India jersey.
Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni. (Photo: Getty Images)
“I couldn’t dare to ask him because we all were still grieving. It didn’t sink in immediately that we won’t see him again in international cricket or that a man of his stature has retired like this. It took 2-3 days to realise it. Not only me, but for everyone present there,” Gaikwad added.
A man of few words, he put up a video of the memories he had with the Indian cricket team, accompanied by an emotional song as his announcement of retirement.
