Kolkata: Mahendra Singh Dhoni finally decides to step aside from playing the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 tournament. Though he will not play for Jharkhand, he has decided to play the role of a mentor and will travel with the side on requirements. Everyone expected him to play the tournament ahead of the limited overs’ competition in South Africa. But surprisingly he stood against it.
The Eastern Zone matches of the tournament are scheduled to take place from 7th January at Ranchi. The former India captain in Ranchi now and training in full rhythm with the likes of Sourabh Tiwary and Shahbaz Nadeem. Thursday was eventually the day for the team selection and he informed his decision to Jharkhand Cricket Association prior to that. The Secretary of Jharkhand Cricket Association Mr Debasis Chakraborty told xtratime.in, “He told us prior to the meeting that he is not available for the selection but he will certainly be with the team.”
Dhoni was a significant player for the side in the last season and came to Kolkata by train with the Jharkhand team. The knock-out stage matches of the Syed Mushtaq Ali tournament will be at Kolkata in this season as well from 21st January. The coach of Jharkhand, Rajib Kumar was saying, “He has always been a believer of the junior theory. He decided not to play just to allow another youngster to get the playing opportunity. But he is training regularly and will be there with the squad. If the team qualifies for the knock-out, he might come down to Kolkata as well.”