Dhoni, Raina retire, leaving fans asking Thala pola varuma?

For the rest of India, they are Dhoni and Raina. For people of Tamil Nadu, they are Thala and Chinna Thala. The cricket-crazy fans of the state adopted these two distinctive cricketers as their own. Now, as cricket fever was slowly gripping them again, thanks to the upcoming IPL, Dhoni and Raina’s retirement announcements have left their legion of fans stumped.
‘Dhoni is the most successful cricketer I have ever seen’

I would simply say that Dhoni is one of the greatest captains and the most successful cricketer I have ever seen.I am fortunate to have pleasant memories with him as the chairman of the selection committee during the 2011 World Cup. The T20 World Cup, the 2011 World Cup and then, the Champions Trophy — all those are outstanding achievements. My congratulations to him and may he have happy retirement days. And Raina has been a dangerous player in both ODIs and T20s.
- Krishnamachari Srikkanth, former cricketer and former chairman of the selection committee
‘This is a start of new partnership together’

It is very difficult for someone who is from outside Chennai to be accepted here, but Dhoni was accepted and he became a cult hero. It’s a different level of achievement altogether. Dhoni embraced Chennai, the whistle podu culture and everything about the city. He genuinely loves the city. Whenever I got a chance to interview him, I felt a certain aura around him. When you think of CSK, Dhoni and Raina are two names that are synonymous with the team. Raina announcing his retirement with Dhoni sort of establishes the kind of relationship they have. Raina has always been there when Dhoni needed him on the field. This is a start of new partnership.
- Suhail Chandhok, commentator
‘Greatest captain india has ever produced’

Dhoni and Raina are two players who get a lot of love from all over India, not just Chennai. Dhoni is the greatest captain India has ever produced. He was a great batsman who could finish matches at will. He had an outstanding career. Raina was also a great cricketer, especially in ODIs and T20s. It’s such a big loss to Indian cricket. I was the chairman of the selection committee when Dhoni was selected as the captain for the T20 World Cup, in 2007. Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and Zaheer Khan had expressed their inability to play the World Cup. We had to pick a fresh captain for a new team that hadn’t played in the format! He was very happy, but since he is not expressive, he remained calm when we told him that he was going to lead the team. It was wonderful to see him lead the team and win the World Cup. I’ve been watching Raina from his U-14 days when I was the chairman of Talent Resource Development Wing. I’m very happy we spotted him and groomed him at the National Cricket Academy (NCA).
- Dilip Vengsarkar, former cricketer and chairman of the selection committee
‘Dhoni knew he wouldn’t feel low if he announced his retirement while in Chennai’

Dhoni and Raina are not only 200 per cent fit to play in the IPL, but also in T20 international cricket. Dhoni is indispensable in the T20 format even today. So, he must be in an upbeat mood with the IPL just around the corner. And that could probably be the reason why he made his retirement announcement in Chennai. He knew he would not feel low if he announced his retirement in Chennai.
- Bosskey, cricket show host and actor
‘So many life lessons to learn from the way Dhoni plays a match’

Retirement was an idea planted in Dhoni’s mind as people kept on asking him about his future plans. He’ll be missed in the blue jersey. There are so many life lessons to learn from the way he plays a match. In real life, too, his matches inspire us to give our best with whatever we have without worrying about the result. I met him for the first time in 2014. Since then, he acknowledges me every time he sees me. There may come another captain who might help India win one more World Cup, but there won’t be anyone to replace Dhoni behind the stumps.
- Saravanan Hari, Dhoni’s super fan