Syed Kirmani believes MS Dhoni shouldn't have retired from Test cricket

Former Indian wicket-keeper Syed Kirmani has started another debate about the career of former India captain MS Dhoni as he believes MS Dhoni should not have retired from Test cricket as Virat Kohli still need some grooming.

Despite having a phenomenal record as a Test captain, Virat Kohli has drawn some criticism from the former wicket-keeper. Kohli has captained India in 35 Tests out which India have won 21 and have lost just five of them.

His win percentage of 60 is the most for any captain who has led India in 10 or more matches. Next best after Kohli is the legendary Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, who has a win percentage of 47.5 in 40 Tests.

On the other hand, MS Dhoni-led India in 60 Tests and also took India to the top of the ICC Test rankings in 2010. However, Dhoni’s record as a captain out of the subcontinent is not as impressive as it is at home and it was on the away tour of Australia in 2014 when Dhoni hung his boots in the longest format.

Virat Kohli was appointed as the captain of the Test team, and it was in 2016 when Kohli was appointed the captain in all the three formats. Since then, Dhoni has been passing on his experience and knowledge whenever the two have played together which has helped Kohli in some critical situations.

However, Kirmani believes that Dhoni shouldn’t have retired from the Test format as Virat still needs guidance.

Kirmani said:

“I still feel Dhoni didn’t do the right thing by retiring from Tests. Virat still needs his guidance and also the next batch could have learnt more about the rigours of Test cricket from him. But as far as ODIs and T20s are concerned, my choice is Dinesh Karthik. He is a fantastic batsman, a safe wicketkeeper and a very good outfielder. He is an all-rounder for me,” 

“In Tests, it will be a choice between Wriddhiman Saha, Parthiv and maybe Karthik. It will depend on who is in form and remains fit.”

Kirmani is also not happy with the discussion about Dhoni’s consistency as a batsman of late.

“Show me, one Indian batsman, apart from skipper Virat Kohli, who has shown amazing consistency for a period of five years now. I don’t think there is anyone. Virat is in a different league. So why only pinpoint Dhoni? Don’t forget, he has given results for nearly 15 years now. He is still an asset for the team.”

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