It seems that former Indian skipper, MS Dhoni might be returning to international cricket in March next year, ahead of the 13th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has sought permission from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to allow seven of its top cricketers to be part of the Asia XI team, which is scheduled to play two T20Is against the Rest of the World.
The two matches are scheduled on March 18 and 21 and have already been acknowledged as the international matches by the International Cricket Council (ICC). Besides Dhoni, the other top cricketers, that the BCB has requested for are Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and Ravindra Jadeja.
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Describing the same to India Today, BCB chief executive Nizamuddin Chowdhury said, “Yes, Bangladesh is scheduled to host two T20 Internationals between Asia XI and Rest of the World. We are in touch with BCCI and other cricket boards of the Asian region to allow their players to be part of these two games.”
Dhoni hasn’t played any cricket since the World Cup semi-final against New Zealand in July. Subsequently, he has bee missing the game for India since the World Cup and there has been no clarity on his return to international cricket. Dhoni made himself unavailable for selection for India’s tour of West Indies in August as he took a sabbatical to train with the Para Regiment of the Indian Army in Kashmir.
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Former Indian skipper did not play the T20I series against South Africa at home and wasn’t part of the T20I team that beat Bangladesh 2-1 in a recently-concluded series. He was also not named in India’s limited-overs squads for the upcoming ODI and T20I series against West Indies despite videos of his training session in Ranchi going viral just before the team announcement.
If BCCI does give a go-ahead to BCB’s request and Dhoni agrees to be part of those matches, it could well end long suspense over Dhoni’s future.
