‘Dhoni was an absolute gentleman’- Fans recall how former India captain MS Dhoni sportingly withdrew run out appeal during India vs England Test in 2011

It is true that cricket has historically been acknowledged for its good sportsmanship, but plenty of concerns have been raised among fans and analysts ever since England’s Jonny Bairstow was controversially dismissed in the second Test of the ongoing Ashes series. The occurrence began when the right-handed batter walked outside the crease before Australian wicketkeeper Alex Carey got him stumped.

Fans started pondering if the Aussies had been true to dismiss Bairstow in this fashion, as they recalled how former India captain MS Dhoni thwarted his run-out appeal during an India vs England Test match in 2011 by allowing Ian Bell to take back the crease.

On that day, England star batter Eoin Morgan struck a ball from Ishant Sharma towards the square-leg in the second innings of the second Test involving India and England at Nottingham. England batters, under the premise that the ball had hit the boundary skirting, began to walk off the pitch for Tea. In truth, the ball had stood still right before the boundary skirting. And Praveen Kumar who was in the outfield, took the ball and threw it to keeper Dhoni. The Indian skipper collected the ball, dislodged the bails and appealed for a run-out. It was taken upstairs to the third umpire who deemed it out.

Following the dismissal, the Indian players, who were under attack by the ruthless English fans echoing boos in the stadium, had to walk off quietly back to the pavilion. Consequently, the last session of the day got underway. Bell and Morgan stepped onto the field of play, with India skipper Dhoni opting to dismiss his run-out appeal and getting back the England batter on the crease.

Twitter has been buzzing over controversial Bairstow dismissal

In a similar vein, the cricketing fraternity has responded to Bairstow’s dramatic stumping dismissal in the second Ashes Test. Considering that was clearly within the parameters of cricket law, a plethora of people have been voicing their opinions on the incident. However, English fans have been brutally condemning the Australian squad and Alex Carey for the manner of the dismissal, and also accused them of breaching the spirit of cricket.

After Sunday’s match, Twitter has been buzzing with excitement as cricket supporters have reacted to the heated situation. Certain Indian fans shared clips of Dhoni from India’s 2011 campaign against England during the chaos.

Here is how fans reacted:

Bell had good reason to think the ball had gone for four because of the fielder’s reaction. It was the end of the over and walked off for tea. He wasn’t trying to take a run. Technically out, but Dhoni did the right thing by withdrawing the appeal.

— Richard Temple (@TikkaTemple) July 2, 2023

A true sportsman ship by #mahi

— liaqatali (@liaqata12041247) July 2, 2023

https://twitter.com/Llundain1880/status/1675736205676146688

https://twitter.com/MalikBot4/status/1675528024018784256

MS Dhoni called Ian Bell back and asked him to carry on batting even after he was dismissed run out at Trent Bridge in 2011 ♥️pic.twitter.com/2Vx3o60uCg

— Farid Khan (@_FaridKhan) July 2, 2023

Can't expect this from the Aussies. You can only expect a little bit of under arm, sand paper etc.

— Finny (@FinnysUtopia) July 3, 2023