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Saturday, November 09, 2024  
06 Jumada Al-Awwal 1446  

Virat Kohli reacts to reporter's question on MS Dhoni retirement speculation

India captain Virat Kohli said he hasn't been informed anything about MS Dhoni's future while speaking to the press after India's World Cup 2019 exit in Manchester on Wednesday.

Speculations were rife that MS Dhoni would announce his retirement after India's campaign in the World Cup. However, India Today sources had confirmed that there were no official word on Dhoni retiring.

Dhoni, it is safe to say, played his last 50-over World Cup match on Wednesday. The World Cup-winning wicketkeeper-batsman hit a valiant 50 in India's unsuccessful chase of 240 against New Zealand in the semi-final in Manchester.

Dhoni took his time to get going but stitched a crucial stand with Ravindra Jadeja. The duo added 106 runs for the 7th wicket but India fell short of the total by 18 runs after the top-order imploded in the first 10 overs.

Here's what happened in the press conference in Manchester on Wednesday

Reporter: After this, India are going to the West Indies to play ODIs as well. There are speculations about what MS Dhoni will do next. Has he told anything about his plans to your or the team?

Virat Kohli: No, he hasn't told us anything about his future.

There were concerns surrounding MS Dhoni's strike rate in World Cup 2019 as the former captain faced a lot of heat after a slow knock in India's close win over Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, former India captain Sourav Ganguly defended MS Dhoni's approach in the semi-final, saying the wicketkeeper-batsman is still one of the greatest finishers of the game.

"As a finisher he has tremendous respect all around the world, as Kevin Pietersen said. And it was actually not over, it was tough but he had the ability to finish matches on his own and get the big hits. That's why he leaves it to the last," Sourav Ganguly added.

A few weeks ago we were here and all talking about MS Dhoni... I said he will get through this phase... he will bat and he will bat. The day he finishes a game people will say 'what a finisher'. The day he doesn't get through, people will say 'he has taken too many deliveries'. That's how he plays his game. He actually believes that's the way to win cricket matches.—IndiaTodays