Former India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni comes from Ranchi and everyone by now knows that he was a ticket checker in Indian Railways before he became a professional cricketer.
And due to Ranchi's proximity with West Bengal and similarity in the languages, Dhoni understands Bengali very well. He revealed in a recent interview that he could also speak Bengali fluently when he was working in Kharagpur.
Which is why whenever India played against Bangladesh, Dhoni could understand whatever the opposition players were saying on the field.
But the Bangladeshi players did not know this until Dhoni himself made the revelation to them after a match against India.
The cricket legend revealed that he once stumped the Bangladeshi players who were coming up with strategies on the field while playing against India and speaking in Bengali.
Dhoni understood everything that was being said but he kept it to himself and had a good laugh with his teammates before telling the Bangladeshi players after the match that he understood every word that was said by them.
When Dhoni stumped Bangladeshi players
"Kharagpur me mere railways ka job tha aur us samay Bengali meri bahut achhi thi. Ab bhi bolunga toh bhulbhal bolunga, kisko kya kharaab laag jayega [When I used to work at Kharagpur in Railways, my Bengali was very well. Now if I speak, I may make mistakes], but I can understand Bengali very well."
"Interestingly, hum log Bangladesh mein match khel rahe the, toh mai batting kar raha tha. Unko nahi pata tha mujhe Bengali aati hai. Woh keeper udhar se chillake fast bowler ko bol raha tha kuch. Mujhe pehle pata tha woh kya daalne wala hai. Toh jab match khatam hua fir hum baat kar rahe the toh.. Ae Eta Bangali bujhte pari [Interestingly, once, we were playing a match in Bangladesh, and they didn’t know I understood Bengali. Their keeper was suggesting something to the bowler, so I already knew what he would bowl. So, once the match ended, they (Bangladeshi players) were talking among themselves and seeing my reaction, they were like He understands Bengali],” Dhoni recalled.
Mahi's future in cricket
MSD retired from international cricket on August 15, 2020. He remains the only Indian captain to win all three ICC titles - T20 World Cup, ODI World Cup and Champions Trophy.
Dhoni continues to lead the Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League and might play one more season next year before calling it quits from all cricket.
