Well, it's safe to say that Dhoni isn't going anywhere as long as the men who matter have his back.
They say cricket's a funny game. Well, in terms of players' retirement, it gets funnier. More often than not, critics don't bay for a players' blood based on his form, they do so with respect to his/her age.
Sachin Tendulkar, Geoffrey Boycott and Misbah-ul-Haq are classic examples of cricketers defying the age barrier, but they are exceptions. For others, their careers are in jeopardy by the time they hit their mid-30s.
Case in point - Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
The 36-year-old former India captain has been under the cosh for a couple of years now. And just like England's Alastair Cook - who at the age of 33 scored a masterful double-century in the ongoing fourth Ashes Test against Australia - he has put in performance after performance to silence his critics.
Even so, there are plenty of 'pundits' out there questioning Dhoni's presence in India's limited-overs sides.
But to MSD's good fortune, there are also many who value his contributions to the Men In Blue's cause. One of them being Ajinkya Rahane.
India's vice-captain in Tests has come out in support of Dhoni, saying the legend still has a lot of cricket left in him. "Definitely MS Dhoni has cricket left in him. He is taking care of his fitness, he is looking after his body, he is looking after his diet I mean and also his advices on the field to Virat is such a big difference," Rahane was quoted as saying by India Today.
"And he has a skill and he is so experienced that he has actually seen everything. I feel he is the guy and we are lucky to have him in our team. His advice means a lot to us, it taught us a lot and he definitely has cricket left in him," Rahane added.
Not just Rahane, ODI vice-captain Rohit Sharma and head coach Ravi Shastri too have put their weight behind Dhoni in the recent past. "I am shocked that this question is being raised. If you look at the recent performances, I don't understand why people are still talking about it," Rohit had said after India's clean sweep of Sri Lanka last week.
While Shastri asked Dhoni's haters to have a good look in the mirror: "If they (Dhoni's critics) look at themselves in the mirror and ask the question, 'what they were at the age of 36?', would they have run two runs faster?'. But the time they finish two, this guy will run three. Then he has won only two World Cups and averages only 51. He is still one of the best around, not only in the Indian team, but the world. Some of the things you see with him are not sold in the market. You will not get it anywhere else."
Well, it's safe to say that Dhoni isn't going anywhere as long as the men who matter have his back.
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