Indian Cricket Board decides on retiring MS Dhoni’s Number 7 jersey: Reports

The India Cricket Board (ICB) made a heartfelt tribute to former India captain MS Dhoni as they have chosen to retire the No. 7 jersey. This jersey number in particular became synonym to Dhoni, who is arguably the captain when it comes to winning major tournament. Just like how the Indian board retired Sachin Tendulkar’s No. 10 shirt, they’ve now decided to do the same for Dhoni’s No. 7 shirt.

This decision acknowledges the significant contributions made by the wicketkeeper-batter to Indian cricket. Additionally, the ICB has informed Indian team players that they are prohibited from wearing the No. 7 jersey. This rule mirrors the restriction imposed on the No. 10 jersey also. According to some report in the Indian Express, who have also verified that the No. 7 jersey is unavailable for Indian players.

“The young players and current Indian team players have been told not to pick Dhoni’s Number 7 jersey. The BCCI has decided to retire Dhoni’s T-shirt for his contribution to the game. A new player can’t get No. 7, and No. 10 was already off the list of available numbers,” said a senior Board official told Indian Express.

Shardul Thakur and Shubman Gill have donned number 10 and number 7 jersey

In his early days with the Indian team, pacer Shardul Thakur briefly wore the No. 10 shirt. But it was retired following a widely-discussed incident. In U19 World Cup 2018, Shubman Gill settled for 77 when No. 7 was unavailable. For the No. 7 jersey, the ICB promptly acted to make it inaccessible to players.  The ICB official also verified that the Indian team’s players currently have a total of 60 allotted jersey numbers.

“At present, 60-odd numbers are designated to the regulars in the Indian team and those in contention. So even if a player is out of the team for about a year or so, we don’t give away his number to a new player. That means a recent debutant has just 30-odd numbers to choose from,” said a ICB official.