Mahendra Singh Dhoni Shouldn't Have Quit Tests Completely: Sourav Ganguly

Mahendra Singh Dhoni's decision to completely quit Test cricket has caught former India captain Sourav Ganguly by surprise. Like Sunil Gavaskar, Ganguly too feels Dhoni should have continued playing the longer format of the game even if he wasn't the captain.(Dhoni Got Emotional While Breaking News to Team)

Dhoni made a quiet exit after the third Test in Melbourne ended in a draw on Tuesday. With the series lost and the fourth Test in Sydney from January 6 only of academic interest, critics have questioned Dhoni's timing of retirement. Ganguly has been stumped too.(Dhoni Retires From Tests)

Ganguly said had Dhoni stepped down from captaincy and played for a few more years, Indian cricket would have benefitted immensely. "I feel the decision to give up captaincy was right, though I think the decision not to play Test cricket is an incorrect one," Ganguly wrote in the Hindustan Times.(A Look at Dhoni's Career)

"I have been in this situation before and I can bet it would have allowed Dhoni to play freely and do justice to his talent. We would have seen a rejuvenated Dhoni for the remaining part of his Test career as he still had cricket left in him," Ganguly said.('Dhoni's Contribution Cannot be Measured by Words')

Ganguly had earlier said it was time for Dhoni to pass on the baton of Test captaincy to Virat Kohli, whose aggressive cricket and leadership is winning him fans at home and abroad.(BCCI Tried to Change Dhoni's Mind)

The former India captain, who retired in 2008, said captaincy gets tougher with time and leading the team in all three formats besides keeping wickets would have taken its toll on Dhoni. Gavaskar spoke on similar lines, even saying playing IPL added to the international "burden."('Dhoni Knew Kohli Was Ready')

Ganguly, not once to mince words, said he was surprised by the timing of Dhoni's retirement. India are 2-0 down after three Tests in the four-match series and many felt Dhoni deserted a sinking ship.('Dhoni's Decision Not in Haste')

Ganguly said: "I would be brutally honest that I am surprised by the decision in the middle of the series. Three Tests are over and it was a question of one more. He could have finished it off.

"None of us know whether this decision in the middle of the series could have happened because of an injury, which would have ruled him out of the next Test. He did come into the series with a finger injury and none of us has an idea whether that had become worse," Ganguly wrote.

Ganguly was critical of the way reserve wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha batted in the first Test at the Adelaide Oval. Replacing an injured Dhoni in the series opener, Saha played a rash shot at a critical juncture in India's tense chase on the final day.

Maybe that lack of experience in the team is just why Ganguly feels Dhoni should have seen the series through and called it quits only after the final Test in Sydney starting in the new year.