The word Indian cricketers hate

In Indian sports, there’s nothing romantic about retirement.
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In Indian sports, there’s nothing romantic about retirement. Unlike in Australia, England, South Africa or the US, where the occasion throws up opportunities for lovers of the game to congregate and say one last goodbye to the sportsperson, in India it’s always shrouded in obscurity.

Take for instance Virender Sehwag’s farewell. Despite being given enough indication that his time is up, he did not quit and finally when he was dropped, fans fumed. Even Sehwag was not amused. Ditto with V V S Laxman, who like Sehwag, did not get a final Test. Sachin Tendulkar was coaxed into retirement. Kapil Dev took almost an eternity to get to his world record and retire.

Indian cricket is replete with such instances. Now, the focuses is on two stalwarts—former captain M S Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh. Going by form and other parameters, the latter might soon be walking into the sunset. But Dhoni still seems intent on carrying on. He has not been in his usual form, nor is he able to finish matches at élan like before. The spark is missing and he is not allowing youngsters to get a chance and flourish. Rishabh Pant is waiting in the wings. The recent, painstaking 54 in 114 balls in a losing cause in Antigua was a testimony of  his dipping form.

How long he will stretch it we don’t know. But going by performance, the end is nigh. If the selectors persist with him for another year or two until the 2019 World Cup, perhaps it will send a wrong message. As it is, even now speculations are rife that he is continuing because of commercial commitments. Endorsements and other contracts are the reason behind his dogged resilience against retirement. However, we can’t be sure with Dhoni too. Like during the tour of Australia in 2015, when he suddenly announced retirement from Test cricket, he is capable of springing a surprise. We do sincerely hope he retires before the story loses its surprise element.

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