We have been so accustomed to see Mahendra Singh Dhoni on the cricket field that we tend to forget the fact he is also a human being after all and not a machine. So when Dhoni asked the selectors to rest him for the Test series against Sri Lanka, the news came as a surprise.
In the last three years, Dhoni hardly missed a match. However, the India ODI skipper opted out of the upcoming Test series against Sri Lanka citing exhaustion caused by non-stop cricket.
India have played 124 international games since January 1, 2006 -- 28 Tests, 86 One-Day Internationals and 10 Twenty20 internationals and Dhoni missed just six of them, which includes two Tests and four ODIs.
It will be the first time in three years that Dhoni will be missing three matches on the trot.
Here under is a list of players who appeared in most international games (Tests + ODIs + T20Is) for India. Dhoni occupying a slot at the top is tribute to his fitness and mental toughness.
| Mts Played | Mts Missed | Missed% | |
| MS Dhoni | 118 | 6 | 4.84 |
| Yuvraj Singh | 92 | 32 | 25.81 |
| R Dravid | 86 | 38 | 30.65 |
| SR Tendulkar | 81 | 43 | 34.68 |
| Harbhajan Singh | 78 | 46 | 37.10 |
| V Sehwag | 76 | 48 | 38.71 |
| IK Pathan | 74 | 50 | 40.32 |
| S Sreesanth | 61 | 63 | 50.81 |
| RP Singh | 57 | 67 | 54.03 |
| G Gambhir | 55 | 69 | 55.65 |
| Zaheer Khan | 53 | 71 | 57.26 |
| SC Ganguly | 50 | 74 | 59.68 |