MS Dhoni, the legendary Indian cricketer, recently shared his insights into the challenges of playing Test cricket, particularly during the fifth day when a draw is inevitable. Dhoni, who retired from Test cricket in 2014, revealed that the monotony of playing through long sessions without a clear result was mentally draining.
“The most difficult time during a Test match was the fifth day, when there’s 100% surety that it will be a draw and you still need to keep wickets for maybe two and a half sessions,” Dhoni said. “That was most tiring.”
Dhoni, who played 90 Tests for India, explained that the lack of a clear outcome in such situations made it difficult to stay motivated. “You see there is no result that is happening, you are just going through the motion,” he said. “Bowlers will try to take wickets, batsmen will try to score runs. But if there is no result in the nearest future, then you are like ‘yaar, yeh khatam karke chalte hain na’. Why do we need to be here?'”
Dhoni’s comments highlight the challenges of playing Test cricket, which is often criticized for its slow pace and lack of decisive results. However, Dhoni also expressed his appreciation for the recent trend towards more result-oriented Tests, even if it means home teams preparing pitches that suit their strengths.
“I love the fact that there is a big change in the way people have started playing Test cricket,” he said. “Imagine telling someone who doesn’t know about cricket, ‘we play over five days, we start at 9:30 and 4:30 is the scheduled end of day’s play but we play till 5 o’clock; and after five days sometimes we don’t get a result’. For the game it is not very nice. So I love how there are more results in today’s world.”
Dhoni’s insights provide a valuable perspective on the challenges and rewards of playing Test cricket. His comments also highlight the importance of finding ways to make the format more engaging and result-oriented for both players and fans.
