Former Indian batsman VVS Laxman paid a rich tribute to MS Dhoni, who announced his international retirement on August 15.
Former Indian cricketer VVS Laxman has said that MS Dhoni has always remained emotionally detached from the results of the matches. Dhoni announced his international retirement on August 15, after nearly sixteen years since making his debut for India.
Laxman said that leading the Indian cricket team is one of the "toughest challenge" because one carries the burden of a lot of expectations. However, Dhoni, who led India for over nine years during his playing career, has "inspired millions."
"Love comes from cricketing fans for your cricketing achievements, but respect comes by the way you have conducted yourself, by the way you carried yourself," Laxman said on Star Sports' Cricket Connected.
"And I always felt that captaining the Indian team is probably the toughest challenge for anyone, you know, because there's so much of expectation from everyone around the world. All the Indians around the world want the Indian team to do well, so there's a lot of responsibility on the Indian team captain.
"But MS Dhoni has always been emotionally detached from the results. He has inspired millions of Indians, not only the sports fans, but millions of Indians on how to conduct and how to become an ambassador of your country, how to carry yourself in the public domain. And that's why he's so respected," he added.
Dhoni, who made his ODI debut in 2004, changed the face of Indian cricket with his calm demeanour, sharp understanding of the game and astute leadership qualities. He remains the only captain in the world to have won all three ICC Trophies - ICC World Cup, T20 World Cup and Champions Trophy.
"When you see the social media posts, it's not only from the former players or the cricketing fans, it's from all the Indians, whether you take film stars, socialites, esteemed businessmen, politicians," said Laxman.
"Around the world, all the former cricketers, the entire cricketing fraternity, have thanked MS Dhoni for his contribution not to Indian cricket, but world cricket," he added.
