Sorting his collection of stumps - MS Dhoni reveals retirement plan on birthday

MS Dhoni walks back after the match

Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the Indian captain is known to have the habit of picking up a stump as a token of remembrance after a win.

When questioned about the same in an interview to the BCCI.tv, Dhoni said: “That’s my retirement plan. The good thing is that I do collect a lot of stumps but the bad one is I don’t put a mark as to which match they were from. So, after I retire I’ll watch the videos of all my matches, look closely at the sponsors logos on the stumps and figure out which match a stump belongs to. It will be my post-cricket pass time!”

What made Sachin recommend Dhoni’s name for captaincy?

Dhoni was first named as captain for the 2007 World T20, despite the side having more experienced players than him. Sachin Tendulkar played a crucial part in Dhoni’s appointment as captain and after 7 years at the helm, Dhoni looks back at the interactions he had with the master batsmen as the cornerstone for the decision.

“I think it was more about the interactions that I had with them. For instance, whenever Sachin came on to bowl – and because he could bowl so many different deliveries – he would ask me what the best ball would be – seam-up, leg-spin, off-spin – depending on the wicket and the batsman. Perhaps the honest opinions I gave him at these points made him believe that I read the game well.

“Also, being the keeper, I was always close to the seniors in the slip cordon and had many interactions with them regarding where the game stood or what could be done to gain an advantage over the opponent. I think those were the conversations that led them into believing that I could be a good leader,” said the 33-year-old, when asked whether the national selectors believed in him as a futute captaincy material.

Soon the wicket-keeper batsmen made the job as his own and has enjoyed incredible success across all formats of the game. However, Dhoni conceded that he was not expecting to be the captain of the team when he was announced as captain.

“It did (surprise me), because I was never really aiming for captaincy. For me, being a part of the team is much more important than being the captain. Captaincy is just an added responsibility you get because others think you will be good at that job,” said Dhoni.

The man with the ‘Midas touch’ has won every major trophy in the world starting from the World Twenty-20, Champions Trophy, ICC Test Mace and also the ODI World Cup. When asked to pick one as the most important achievement – “It’s like asking a mother to choose her favourite child. All of them are important in their own way,” said the skipper.