'Stars Aligned, It Was a Perfect Throw': Guptill Recalls Dhoni Run Out for Which He Still Gets 'Hate Mails'

New Zealand batter Martin Guptill has recently revealed that he continues to receive ‘hate mails’ from Indian cricket fans for running out legendary wicketkeeper-batter MS Dhoni in the ICC ODI World Cup 2019 semi-final at Old Trafford, Manchester. It has been more than five years since the incident that dented India’s hope of winning a third title but Guptill is still facing the repercussions of giving the Indian fans a major heartbreak.

India went to a horrendous start in the chase of 240, losing the top three batters for just 5 runs. The wickets kept tumbling until Ravindra Jadeja and MS Dhoni joined forces and stitched a 116-run stand for the seventh wicket. But once the all-rounder was undone by Trent Boult, it all came down to the former captain who was struggling with a fragile tail. Everything still looked in India’s favour but then it was Guptill’s throw that changed the script.

Dhoni decided to shift gears and hammered six to Lockie Ferguson, bringing down the equation to 25 needed off 10. Pushing his limits, Dhoni looked to take a second run in the 49^th over but couldn’t beat Guptill’s throw and was run out by a whisker.

Recalling the incident, Guptill revealed that he knew there was no chance of a direct hit so he just counted upon his luck.

“It’s one of those things that happened so quickly at the moment. All I remember was I saw the ball go up and then I thought, oh no, it’s coming sort of more towards me. So I put the skates on to get on with that run. I knew there was no chance of a throw at the stumps, but I just tried to have a shot and only had one and a half stumps to aim at and I just got lucky. The stars aligned, and it was a perfect throw,” Guptill was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times.

“In other words, the whole of India doesn’t like me. I get plenty of hate mails from there,” he added.

I’m retired, says Guptill

Guptill revealed that he no longer remains an active international cricketer and considers himself retired. However, he added that he isn’t yet done with cricket back home.

“No, I’m not an active international cricketer. I haven’t finished cricket in New Zealand yet. But yes, I’m retired.”

“For me, it was always going to retire after the 23 World Cup and then look to play a few leagues around the world and see the way things transpired back home,” he later added.