India’s greatest captain ever MS Dhoni reportedly refused to take any money from cricket equipment manufacturers brand named BAS for using their bats during the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 which proved to be the final time that Dhoni stepped foot on the field for an international game. BAS is the same company that sponsored him in the early days of his career.
This precious piece of information was disclosed by BAS owner Somi Kohli in a YouTube video uploaded by a famous cricket influencer named Sports Launchpad. In that video, the aged owner spoke about how BAS decided to sponsor MS Dhoni during the time of his debut.
Somi Kohli mentioned the fact that Dhoni himself had come down to his office to discuss about the sponsorship before an ODI series against Pakistan at home in which he scored his maiden ton in the 2nd ODI at Vishakhapatnam back in 5th April 2005.
There was no looking back for MS Dhoni after that major breakthrough as he went on to become the captain of the team and helped in claiming India’s first major ICC trophy since the 1983 World Cup in the form of the inaugural ICC T20 World Cup 2007 in South Africa before landing the elusive ICC Cricket World Cup trophy in 2011 and the ICC Champions Trophy 2 years, beating England in the finale on their own back yard.
He earned 350 ODI caps for the national side, 90 in the longest format and 98 in the shortest format. But that inevitable sad day for not just India but the world’s cricketing fraternity came on 15th August 2020 when MSD took to Instagram and wrote, “Thanks a lot for ur love and support throughout. From 1929 hrs consider me as Retired.”
But we are lucky enough for the fact that the 42-year-old is still playing in the Indian Premier League for Chennai Super Kings. His habit and addiction of winning trophies is still as fresh as it was back then and this year, he will be aiming to add a 6th IPL trophy in what is probably going to be his final IPL season.
MS Dhoni was even seen grinding it out in the nets and was also donning the Prime Sports sticker on his bat which was a tribute to his old friend Paramjit Singh and a sign of such a humble human being that Dhoni is. Another story of his humbleness came across today when BAS owner Somi Kohli revealed that MSD refused to accept a lucrative deal for putting the sticker on his bat.
“He just said put your stickers on my bats and send them across”, Somi Kohli Reveals Conversation With MS Dhoni
Somi Kohli while speaking on the Sports Launchpad channel, revealed the conversation he had with MS Dhoni about the sponsorship deal which the Ranchi-born cricketer refused to accept.
“Dhoni did not mention any money. He just said ‘put your stickers on my bats and send them across’. I tried to convince him, ‘You’re letting go of such a lucrative contract’. He refused crores of rupees worth of contract. I requested his wife Sakshi, his father, mother. Even told his CA and Paramjit from Ranchi. They all went to his home before the World Cup. But he said, No it is my decision,” Somi Kohli said via Sports Launchpad.