MS Dhoni doesn't do drama does he? There was no speech, no thank you to the fans, no special look at the Melbourne pitch, the last wicket he will play on in Test match cricket, nothing -- just a shake of the hands with the Australia players after draw was secured and a walk down the field to do his job -- go to Mark Nicholas and give his opinion on the third Test match at the MCG.
Even during that interview there was not a hint of him quitting. Indeed, Dhoni spoke about how the bowlers had improved in this Test match, learning to bowl according to a plan and how that could bode well for India's Test future -- the assumption was, that Test future also had Dhoni in it.
But, just like that, smack-bang out of the blue, MSD decided his time as Test captain had come and gone, and time was ripe to step down, not just from captaincy, but from playing in whites as well, and let Virat Kohli take India to a new era -- an era of aggressive, sledgefest, talking-right-back-at-you, standing-toe-to-toe cricket.
That was never Dhoni's game was it. Heck, when Nicholas asked what he thought of Australia's ludicrous decision to bat the entire first session, Dhoni kept his thoughts to himself. Ask Kohli that same question, and you would have got a different answer, and a much longer one as well -- apples and oranges these two are.
Say what you may of Dhoni's record as captain for India in Test matches, there is only one Dhoni, in all formats of the game. He was the one who took India to number one in the Test rankings for the first time ever, and even if those rankings might have come down drastically over the past 18 months or so, there is little doubt that Dhoni deserves his place as one of the best, and more poignantly influential, captains in India's Test cricket history.
And trust Dhoni to know the right time to retire. The series is done -- Australia have won it 2-0 with just a match to go -- there is nothing that can be gained by him captaining the Sydney Test match next week, and after Kohli's interesting debut as Test match skipper, what better time to hand over the reins than now.
Kohli is the exact opposite of Dhoni, but he would have learnt quite a bit from watching Captain Cool at the helm. If Kohli can marry his natural agression with the cool sense of calm that Dhoni used to bring to proceedings, then India could have a gem of a captain in their hands.
Dhoni can now concentrate on India's defence of their World Cup title, and maybe after that there will come another press release via the BCCI saying India's greatest ever ODI captain has decided to call it a day as well. Dhoni has never been the kind of guy who will play on till his powers seriously start to wane, and there will be little surprise if his era as the captain of India and the supreme wicketkeeper/batsman comes to an end after the World Cup at the age of just 33.
For India's sake, let's hope not. For now, though, it is about looking back at Dhoni and his legacy in Test cricket.
The man from the small state of Jharkhand, who came, saw, conquered, captivated, frustrated, belied belief, made those heads shake for good and bad reasons, but most importantly took India to another level.
