Shoaib Akhtar: “He should leave cricket with dignity. I don’t know why he dragged it for so long. He should have retired after the World Cup”

Image courtesy of: ESPNcricinfo

Legendary Pakistan pace bowler Shoaib Akhtar said that iconic India wicketkeeper-batsman MS Dhoni should have retired from international cricket after the 2019 World Cup.

In fact, Akhtar noted that if he were Dhoni, he would have pulled the plug on his international career after the star-studded event.

Akhtar questioned why Dhoni has “dragged it for so long” and added that he needs to “leave cricket with dignity”.

“This guy has served to the best of his ability. He should leave cricket with dignity. I don’t know why he dragged it for so long. He should have retired after the World Cup,” Akhtar told PTI as quoted by The Times of India.

“If I would have been in his place, I would have hung up my my boots. I could have played shorter formats for three-four years but I left (after the 2011 WC) as I wasn’t into the game 100 percent. So why drag?

“As a country, you should let him go with a lot of respect and dignity. Give him a nice send off. He has won you the World Cup and done wonders for India. He is a wonderful human being at the same time. But right now, he seems to be stuck.

“When he could not finish the game in the [World Cup] semi-finals [against New Zealand], I felt he should have retired but he can only answer why he didn’t.

“He should have played a farewell series after the World Cup maybe and then said goodbye in a manner befitting his great stature.”

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