Gautam Gambhir termed MS Dhoni's commitment to serving the Indian Army as a fantastic move that promises to inspire youngsters.
The World Cup winner saluted Dhoni's decision to join his battalion in Jammu and Kashmir at the end of the month.
The Indian Army confirmed that Captain Cool is proceeding to the 106 Territorial Army Battalion (Para) to stay there from July 31 to August 15.
The Indian Army in a statement said that Dhoni will be posted in the Kashmir valley to perform the duties of patrolling, guard and post duty. Dhoni's unit is part of the Victor force deployed in Anantnag, Pulwama, Shopian, Kulgam, and Budgam.?
Lauding the swashbuckling middle-order batsman, Gambhir welcomed Dhoni's resolution of serving the Indian Army. Gambhir feels Dhoni has proved his dedication towards the Indian Army. The newly elected member of the Parliament had earlier said that if Dhoni wants to don the army uniform then he shall spend more time with the forces.??
¡°Dhoni¡¯s decision to join the army is a fantastic move. I have said many a time that Dhoni needs to do spend time with the Indian Army if he really wishes to wear the uniform and now by deciding to really serve the army he has proved his dedication,¡± Gambhir said. ¡°This move from Dhoni will motivate thousands of youngsters to join the Indian Army,¡± Gambhir added.
The veteran wicket-keeper batsman was instrumental for Virat Kohli-led side in the recently concluded ICC World Cup 2019 hosted by England and Wales. The 38-year-old played a patient 50-run knock in the first semi-final against New Zealand but failed to rescue the two-time champions after an awful top-order collapse.
But Gambhir is not the only one praising him. Former skipper Kapil Dev too was in high praise for his decision.?
¡°MS Dhoni took a massive decision, which will inspire the youth of the nation. I feel every youth in the country should spend some time in the army,¡± he said while speaking to ABP News.
¡°Spending time with the Army will help the youths and provide them with new learnings,¡± he added.
Meanwhile Army Chief General Bipin Rawat said there was no need to protect Dhoni as he would be doing his duty of protecting the country.?
¡°I don¡¯t think we will need to protect him, he will protect the citizens and garrison entrusted to his task,¡± he said while speaking to NDTV.
¡°When a citizen of India wants to don the military uniform then he has to also be prepared to fulfill the task for which the uniform has been assigned to him. MS Dhoni has carried out his basic training and we know that he will be able to accomplish the task," he added.
¡°In fact, he will be protecting a lot of other people because he will now be performing with the 106 Territorial Army battalion (Para). It is a very good battalion and they have been performing line of communication duties, static protection and he will be a part of it, " the General went on to say.