Dhoni calls cricket commentary ‘very difficult’; says ‘fine line’ between describing the game and criticising players

Dhoni shares his struggles with commentary and stats, emphasizing his preference for listening over speaking in cricket discussions.

Enigmatic former India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has all but ruled out grabbing a microphone inside the commentary box, describing the popular post-retirement job as a "difficult" balancing act driven by stats, which he finds tough to memorise.

The 44-year-old, under whom India won three ICC trophies, has rarely aired his views on issues related to the game since retiring from the national team in 2020. His cricketing connection is now limited to IPL appearances for the Chennai Super Kings.

"Commentary is very difficult. I feel there is a very fine line between describing the game and in that process getting into a zone where you start criticising individuals who are playing the game. It's a very thin line," Dhoni told sports broadcaster Jatin Sapru during a YouTube interaction.

"Often, you don't even feel that what you are doing is may be borderline wrong. You would always like to be on the other side where you are describing the game. If you feel something is wrong you say it out.

"But how to put it, that is also an art, how to politely put it forward where nobody feels targeted... If the team is losing, there are reasons behind it, and you need to have the skill of describing those reasons without anybody feeling bad. That is the art of commentary," he said.

Aside from the delicate nature of the job, Dhoni feels not being able to memorise stats, even his own, puts him at a disadvantage.