Dhoni can still get BCCI contract, he has this chance

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Mahendra Singh Dhoni was scheduled to be dropped from the central contract list and he was informed by the National Selection Committee before finalizing the list.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni was scheduled to be dropped from the central contract list and he was informed by the National Selection Committee before finalizing the list. If the former captain joins the T20 World Cup team this year, he can get a place on the list again.

A top BCCI official said on Thursday that the 38-year-old former captain, a two-time World Cup winner, is not out of the list, as he has not played international cricket for nearly six months. The official said, ‘I want to clarify that one of the top officials of BCCI had spoken to Dhoni and told him about the central contracts.

He was clearly told that since he has not played any match since September 2019, he cannot be placed on the list. Asked who among BCCI President Sourav Ganguly, Secretary Jai Shah and CEO Rahul Johri spoke to Dhoni, the official refused to say.

He said, ‘Who talked, there is no need to fall into it. The point is that it is necessary to tell the player of his stature that at the moment he is out of the central contract and this was done in a proper way.

The official said that if Dhoni makes a place in the T20 World Cup squad to be held in Australia, then he can be given a contract on a ‘pro-rata’ basis. Under the current rule, a central contract can be given to the same player who has played at least three Tests or eight ODIs. He can join the list even if he plays so many T20 matches.

Asked whether Dhoni can retire from ODI cricket after this, he said, ‘Mahendra Singh Dhoni can tell about this himself.’