The real reason behind Dhoni's sudden exit as India captain out, sensational revelation by former selector

New Delhi (The Uttam Hindu): When former Indian captain and one of the world's most successful wicketkeeper-batsmen Mahendra Singh Dhoni suddenly relinquished the ODI and T20 captaincy in January 2017, the entire cricket world was shocked. This decision of Dhoni, the only captain to win all three major limited overs ICC tournaments (T20 World Cup, ODI World Cup and Champions Trophy), was then considered his own voluntary. But now, after almost 9 years, the secret has been revealed that Dhoni did not relinquish the captaincy himself, but was asked to do so. The then BCCI Chief Selector MSK Prasad and selector Jatin Paranjpe met Dhoni and asked him to take this big decision.

'Mahi, now is the right time to move on'

Former selector Jatin Paranjpe revealed the full details of this historic change during an interview on "The Great Indian Cricket Show." He explained that asking such a prominent and successful captain to step down wasn't easy. According to Paranjpe, Mahi batted in the nets for about an hour that day. During that time, MSK Prasad and Paranjpe were constantly looking at each other, preparing to tell Dhoni about stepping down from captaincy with utmost respect. When Dhoni returned from batting, the two selectors went to him and said, "Mahi, we feel now is the right time to move on."

"Anna, this is the right decision"

Mahendra Singh Dhoni has always been known for his calm demeanor and his commitment to putting the team's interests first. He displayed the same maturity during this difficult conversation. Paranjpe explained that Dhoni accepted the selectors' decision with ease. He told MSK Prasad, "Anna, this is the right decision; just tell me what you want from me." MSK then asked Dhoni to give his resignation from captaincy in writing. Dhoni immediately agreed, and late that night, the selectors received an email from him formally announcing his resignation. Paranjpe also acknowledged that the selectors faced heavy criticism from fans after making this tough decision, but it was a bitter pill to swallow for the future of Indian cricket.

Virat Kohli gets full command

Following Dhoni's move, Virat Kohli was officially appointed captain of all formats of the Indian team. Kohli was the Test captain at the time. Former Indian fielding coach R. Sridhar mentioned in his biography that Kohli was very eager to take charge of all three formats. Former head coach Ravi Shastri assured Kohli that when Dhoni felt the time was right, he would definitely get the opportunity. Ultimately, Dhoni reposed his faith in Kohli, and Indian cricket entered a new era. Following this captaincy change, Dhoni played the 2019 ODI World Cup under Virat Kohli's captaincy and then retired from international cricket in 2020.