Tourists arrive in MS Dhoni’s backyard hoping for the kind of response to back-to-back defeats they found in last year’s Ashes
There is a case to say that but for a young MS Dhoni being persuaded to set aside his ambitions as a goalkeeper in football to focus on cricket – the catalyst for a remarkable career captured in a Bollywood biopic – India and England might not be playing a Test match in his native Ranchi this week.
This is slightly over-egging things, the locals say. While the state of Jharkhand and its cricket association were formed at the turn of the century, the handsome 39,000-seater ground built 12 years ago owes plenty to the late Amitabh Choudhary, a prominent administrator from the city who, along with Dhoni, has a pavilion named after him.
Written by Ali Martin in Ranchi
This news first appeared on https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2024/feb/21/cricket-england-braced-for-trial-by-spin-in-make-or-break-fourth-india-test under the title “England braced for trial by spin in make-or-break fourth India Test”. Bolchha Nepal is not responsible or affiliated towards the opinion expressed in this news article.
