Willing to quit captaincy if that would benefit Indian cricket: MS Dhoni

MS Dhoni

India One-Day International (ODI) captain MS Dhoni has offered to quit from the captaincy if that would benefit Indian cricket in the long run. The Indians suffered a 6-wicket defeat in the second ODI against Bangladesh at Mirpur, consigning them to their first ever series defeat against the hosts with the third and final ODI still to play.

Facing a plethora of questions from the media about his future after India’s poor display, Dhoni, rather sarcastically, remarked that he is always the one who is at fault for anything that goes wrong with Indian cricket and added that he was willing to continue playing as a player alone.

"I am always the one who is responsible for anything bad that happens in Indian cricket. Everything that happens is because of me. Even the Bangladesh media is smiling," Dhoni said during the post-match press conference.

"I am really enjoying my cricket. But when the earlier question was asked, I knew this question was coming. These are the questions that will keep popping up. The media loves me. If it is a justifiable thing that if you remove me and the Indian cricket will start doing really well, and if I am the reason for all the bad that is happening to Indian cricket, definitely I would love to step away and play as a player," he added.

Dhoni added that he has never been emotionally attached to the captaincy and that he would have no problem giving it away.

"It doesn't matter who is the captain. I was never really in line to become a captain. It was a job or responsibility for me. I have taken that responsibility. It was given to me, I took it. If they want to take it away, I am happy to give it away."

Dhoni, who was appointed ODI captain in 2007, has won 100 of the 180 matches that he has captained, which includes winning the 2011 World Cup and the 2013 Champions Trophy and established himself as one of India’s best ever captains in the process. In that time, he has also been one of India’s leading performers with the bat, scoring 6074 runs at an average of 56.24.