'End of an era': BCCI chief Sourav Ganguly pays tribute to MS Dhoni

"It is the end of an era. What a player he has been for the country and world cricket. His leadership qualities have been something, which will be hard to match, especially in the shorter format of the game," said Sourav Ganguly.

New Delhi:Former skipper and current Board of Control for Cricket in India's (BCCI) president Sourav Ganguly on Saturday termed MS Dhoni's retirement from international cricket as the end of an era and lauded Dhoni on a remarkable career.

Earlier today, taking to Instagram, the wicket-keeper-batsman Dhoni shared a video and captioned the post, "Thanks a lot for ur love and support throughout. from 1929 hrs consider me as Retired."

The video had the iconic song 'Mai Pal Do Pal Ka Shayar Hu' from Amitabh Bachchan's 'Kabhie Kabhie' playing in the background and in it, Dhoni shared his incredible journey in the Indian side including his run out in the last game against New Zealand in the World Cup 2019 semifinal.

Minutes after Dhoni's retirement, Suresh Raina also announced that he is retiring from international cricket.

"It is the end of an era. What a player he has been for the country and world cricket. His leadership qualities have been something, which will be hard to match, especially in the shorter format of the game. His batting in one-day cricket in his early stages made the world stand up and notice his flair and sheer natural brilliance. Every good thing comes to an end and this has been an absolutely brilliant one," Ganguly said in an official release issued by BCCI.

MS Dhoni and Sourav Ganguly

"He has set the standards for the wicketkeepers to come and make a mark for the country. He will finish with no regrets on the field. An outstanding career; I wish him the best in life," he added.

Jay Shah, the secretary of the BCCI called Dhoni's retirement decision as "personal" and lauded the former skipper on showing great captaincy skills.

"MS Dhoni is one of the greats of the modern era. I understand it's a personal decision and we respect that. 'Mahi' as we all fondly refer to him, has had an exceptional career in international cricket. His captaincy has been both inspiring and commendable. He is leaving the game richer from the time he joined. I wish him all the very best for IPL and his future endeavours," Jay Shah said in an official release.

Dhoni, hailing from Ranchi, who made his ODI debut in 2004, changed the face of Indian cricket with his calm demeanour, sharp understanding of the game, and astute leadership qualities.

He is among the most successful captains in world cricket. It was under his leadership that India lifted the ICC Cricket World Cup in 2011 after having led India to triumph in the ICC World T20 in its maiden edition of the tournament held in 2007 in South Africa.

With India winning the ICC Champions Trophy in 2013 in England, Dhoni became the first and is still the only captain to date to have won all three ICC Trophies.

While his heroics in the limited-overs formats are well documented, it was also under his leadership that India became the number one Test side in 2009 and the team stayed at the top for over 600 days. He has led India to victory in 21 home Test matches, the most by an Indian captain.

MS Dhoni in numbers.

Leaving behind a rich legacy that will be difficult to replicate, Dhoni holds the record for most international matches as captain (332).

Unarguably the quickest man behind the wicket, Dhoni has 195 international stumpings, the most by any wicket-keeper.

Dhoni played 350 ODIs with his highest score being 183 against Sri Lanka. Also referred to as 'Captain Cool', Dhoni is known for his calmness and exquisite captaincy on the field.

He was also known for his knack of opting for reviews and many have jokingly remarked to change the 'Decision-Review System's' name to 'Dhoni-Review System'.

In December 2014, he announced his retirement from Tests and gave a chance to the likes of Wriddhiman Saha. Dhoni called time on his Test career after playing 90 Tests, managing to score 4,876 runs at an average of 38.09. Then in 2017, he handed over the captaincy to Virat Kohli in the 50-over format.

Dhoni was slated to return to the cricket field on March 29 during the IPL's opening match between CSK and Mumbai Indians. However, the tournament will now be played in the UAE from September 19 to November 10.

He will continue to captain CSK in the IPL 2020.