Dhoni completes 15 years in international cricket

World Cup-winning captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, on Monday, completed 15 years in international cricket.

Dhoni made his debut in the international cricket on December 23, 2004, against Bangladesh but was run out on a duck. Although the cricketer did not witness a good start to his international career, Dhoni has gone on to amass 17266 runs across all formats for India.

Dhoni, who is hailed as the best finisher in the world by many, brought many laurels to the country. He led the team in ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 and finished the match in style to help India lift the coveted trophy, last won in 1983.

He also led his IPL franchise Chennai Super Kings to three titles and two Champions League Twenty victories.

Under the leadership of the 38-year-old, India also lifted the ICC World T20 title in 2007 and the Champions Trophy later. India lifted the inaugural edition of the ICC World T20 in 2007 after defeating arch-rivals Pakistan by five runs.

However, Dhoni has not stepped out on the field for the team since suffering the semi-final exit in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019. India faced an 18-run defeat at the hands of New Zealand.

Despite India being in a difficult position in the match, all hopes were alive till Dhoni was on the field. The wicket-keeper batsman was run out after which the match slipped out of India's grasp.

The past few months have been marred by speculations of his retirement.

"Don't ask me anything till January," the former skipper recently told the mediapersons when the questions about his retirement propped up. For the record, Dhoni will certainly be donning the CSK Yellow during IPL 2020.