In tribute to MS Dhoni, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has decided to retire the No. 7 jersey worn by Team India players. This iconic number, associated with Dhoni’s leadership during significant victories, joins Sachin Tendulkar’s No. 10 in the list of retired jersey numbers.
The BCCI has communicated to both current and debutant national team players that they cannot choose numbers 7 and 10. Dhoni previously clarified that he selected the No. 7 because it corresponds to his birthdate (July 7) rather than being a lucky number.
A senior board member says “The young players and current Indian team players have been told not to pick M S 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,”
“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.”
Young players are vying for significant jersey numbers, but many are already claimed by senior team members. Emerging talents are currently opting for unconventional numbers on their jerseys. For instance, Yashasvi Jaiswal, who recently debuted internationally, wished for No. 19, currently held by Dinesh Karthik. Shubman Gill had a preference for No. 7 but had to settle for No. 77.
After Tendulkar’s retirement in 2013, the No. 10 jersey briefly belonged to Shardul Thakur, but due to mixed reactions, he switched to No. 54 following BCCI’s decision to retire the number. The practice of retiring jersey numbers is common in sports; cricket follows this trend, as seen with RCB retiring numbers 17 and 333 for AB de Villiers and Chris Gayle in their franchise Hall of Fame.
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