Nostalgic moments are like small capsules, which are stored somewhere in the memory bank. It could flash in the mind at any point of time, depending on an event or an incident which in turn transports you to a different era. In this context, the event that we are talking about is in a hypothetical sense: Rumours surrounding MS Dhoni’s retirement from the Indian Premier League. And the grapevine related to whether Dhoni would captain for one final time, in front of his adoring fans.
For a few minutes, those speculations did indeed take you on a jog down the memory lane to Chennai Super Kings’ game against then Kings XI Punjab, in Mohali, way back in 2008. On the surface, it looks like just any other high-scoring game. But scratch it, and you will notice that it was CSK’s maiden appearance in the IPL. It was also the first time that Dhoni, the ‘Thala’, had led CSK. Dhoni didn’t do much in that match; scored a mere two runs. He neither took a catch nor affected a stumping.
However, just the memories of him walking out for the toss with Yuvraj Singh would be etched in memories. You wondered, whether 17 years later, Dhoni would come out of the dressing room and toss the coin, with DC’s Axar Patel standing beside him. To put things into perspective, in 2008, Axar, his opposing captain, was all of 14. Most likely he was better known for tonking sixes in Under-14 competitions and being called ‘Jayasuriya’ for his big-hitting abilities.
Unfortunately, before more memories would gush forth of Dhoni’s leadership qualities, speculations of him again leading the CSK side had died down. Ruturaj Gaikwad, the designated CSK captain, was passed fit and walked out for the toss event.
The second part of the narrative, though, refused to lose its steam: Is Dhoni going to hang up his boots from competitive cricket? To make it even more intriguing, there were reports of Dhoni’s parents being present at the stadium.
At that juncture, once more recollections from the inaugural IPL burst forth. It was a blistering innings of 65 off just 30 deliveries, versus Royal Challengers Bengaluru. The evocative memories of Dhoni nonchalantly whipping Dale Steyn and Jacques Kallis through both the leg-side and down the ground still echo in the mind.
Returning to the present context, as a cricket aficionado, you hoped for some Dhoni heroics. At 43, it is unfair to expect Dhoni to play those whippy helicopter shots of yore. But even a few lusty blows, alongside steering his side past the finish line would have been enough for his evergreen fans to feel good about their hero. It wasn’t to be as Dhoni trudged along at a strike rate of less than 100 for a while. He did crack a six, but by then the result of the match was more or less a foregone conclusion. In summary, it was painful to watch Dhoni collect singles with the asking rate touching 18 an over.
Dhoni has mostly got his timing right when it comes to retirement. In that backdrop, you ponder if this is the first time that Dhoni has lost the plot by deciding to play one more IPL? Probably, he could have retired after CSK ended up hoisting the trophy in 2023. As fans, all that we can do is wish for that one vintage performance from Dhoni before he walks into retirement life. Otherwise, we will be left with clinging on to old memories for the rest of the season.