'MS Dhoni dropped me from the side...': Virender Sehwag's massive revelation on forcefully considering early retirement from ODIs

Former India opener Virender Sehwag made a shocking revelation about his career when he seriously considered retiring from ODIs well before the 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup. The reason for his early retirement mindset was a prolonged exclusion from the playing XI under then-captain MS Dhoni. However, Sehwag revealed that advice from his batting partner and close friend Sachin Tendulkar changed his career.

He recalled the 2007-08 Commonwealth Bank Series in Australia, a tri-nation tournament involving India, Australia, and Sri Lanka, where Sehwag played the first five completed matches of the series, but he failed to perform, scoring just 81 runs at an average of 16.20, with a highest score of 33.

ALSO READ: 'My country, my identity, my life': Gautam Gambhir's six-word powerful social media post for Independence Day goes viral

Sehwag's rough patch led to Dhoni dropping him from the last three league games. India won the tri-series, with Gautam Gambhir and Sachin Tendulkar leading the batting charts. After India's historic win, Sehwag's place in the team and future in the format were in question.

ALSO READ: 'Already knew whose hands it was in': Irfan Pathan breaks silence on Team India ouster, shares Gary Kirsten’s 'exact words' that pointed to MS Dhoni’s decision to drop him

In the 2007-08 series in Australia, I played the first three (five) matches and then MS Dhoni dropped me from the side. I wasn’t picked for a while after that. Then I felt that if I can’t be a part of the playing XI, then there was no point in my playing ODI cricket. Then I went to Tendulkar and said, ‘I am thinking of retiring from ODIs’. He said, ‘No, I went through a similar phase in 1999-2000, where I felt I should leave cricket. But that phase came and went. So, you are going through a trough, but it will pass. Don’t make any decision when you are emotional. Give yourself some time and 1-2 series, and then take a call.’ When that series ended, I played in the next series and made a lot of runs. I played the 2011 World Cup and we won the World Cup as well," Sehwag said on Padamjeet Sehrawat's YouTube channel.

After Sachin's advice, Sehwag regained his form in the Kitply Cup later that year by scoring 150 runs in three matches and after his consistent performances, he also featured alongside Tendulkar as an opener in the 2011 World Cup, which the Men in Blue won. Sehwag eventually retired in 2015 with an illustrious ODI record. In 251 matches, he hammered 8,273 runs, scoring 15 centuries, and a highest score of 219, then the highest individual score in ODIs.