India v New Zealand – ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 Semi-Final – Source: Getty

Former Indian captain MS Dhoni reflected on the side’s painful defeat in the 2019 ODI World Cup semi-final against New Zealand, calling it a heartbreaking moment. The now-43-year-old was at the thick of the action towards the climax of the outing, with his run out effectively being the decider.

With 25 needed off 10 deliveries to win, Dhoni attempted a tacky second run only to be dismissed off a direct hit by Martin Guptill. His run out meant India endured a tough 18-run defeat to bow out of the tournament.

The contest also became Dhoni’s final international outing, with the legendary keeper-batter announcing his retirement a year later.

Dhoni opened up on the infamous 2019 semi-final during an event and said (via Times of India):

“It was a difficult one because I knew that this will be my last World Cup, so it would have been good to be on the winning side. It was heartbreak moment, so we accepted the result and we tried to move on. It takes time and one gets some time after the World Cup. I hadn’t played any international cricket after that so I got a lot of time.”

“So, yes, it was a heartbreak but at the same time you have to get out of it. So you just accept that you tried your best, but you were not able to win it,” he added.

Dhoni scored a defiant 72-ball 50 before being run out after entering the crease with India reeling at 71/5.

He finished his international career with over 17,000 runs across formats, including 16 centuries and 106 half-centuries in 538 outings.

“Current favorite, it’s easy to pick a bowler since Bumrah is there” – MS Dhoni

In the same event, Dhoni picked ace pacer Jasprit Bumrah as his current favorite bowler but couldn’t do the same among batters.

Bumrah recently helped India win the 2024 T20 World Cup in the West Indies and the USA with a Player of the Tournament performance.

“Current favorite, it’s easy to pick a bowler since Bumrah is there. It’s difficult to pick a batter because we have several good batters but that doesn’t mean bowlers aren’t good. It’s difficult pick one among batters as whomever I see batting, he looks the best but then I see someone else he also looks great. As long as team India are doing fine, I don’t want to pick a batter but I hope they will keep scoring runs. However, I have picked my favorite bowler,” said Dhoni via India Today.

Bumrah made his India debut under Dhoni’s captaincy in Australia in 2016 and has since become India’s bowling spearhead.

The 30-year-old has picked up almost 400 wickets across formats, including 12 five-wicket hauls in 195 games.