For someone like me who comes from a small town, Dhoni was our hero: KL Rahul

Tags: India, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Kannaur Lokesh Rahul

Published on: Aug 26, 2020

More than a week after he announced his international retirement, the tributes for former India captain and legend MS Dhoni refuse to end. Kings XI Punjab captain and dashing Indian batsman KL Rahul is the latest to join the list. In a video released by Indian Premier League (IPL), Rahul has termed Dhoni as a hero for people like him who came from small towns.

“It was quite an emotional moment for the whole country and for world cricket. We have all grown up wanting to be MS Dhoni. Specially for someone like me who comes from a small town, he was our hero. We always told our families look it doesn’t matter where you come from, you can always go and try and achieve your dreams,” Rahul said in the video.

The promising batsman, who made his international debut in Dhoni's last Test match, added he doesn't have enough words to tell him. "I will just give him a long hug and say thank you and probably ask him to go easy on Kings XI this time,” Rahul, who has played some sizzling knocks of late in limited-overs cricket, went on to state.

Dhoni last played for India in the 2019 World Cup semi-final against New Zealand at Manchester. After over a year of speculation over his future, he finally announced his retirement on August 15 this year. The 39-year-old retired as one of India's most successful captains, and is the only captain in the history of the game to win all three ICC trophies.

Dhoni made his first major impression when he slammed a whirlwind 148 against Pakistan at Visakhapatnam after being sent into bat at number three in 2005. In the same year, he also smashed an unbeaten 183 against Sri Lanka at Jaipur. He will be most remembered though for his unbeaten 91 from 79 balls in the 2011 World Cup final, and the famous last-ball six to clinch the trophy.

--By A Cricket Correspondent

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