MS Dhoni pulls out of West Indies tour to serve Indian army

India's wicket keeper batsman Mahendra Singh Dhoni would not be available for the team's upcoming tour of West Indies, in order to make himself available for the paramilitary regiment.

The former Indian captain, who is also an Honorary Lieutenant Colonel in the Parachute Regiment of the Territorial Army, has informed the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) that he will not be unavailable for two months and as a result will be missing India's tour of the West Indies schedule to commence next month.

“MS Dhoni is not retiring from cricket right now. He is taking a two month sabbatical to serve his paramilitary regiment which he had committed much earlier. We have now intimated his decision to skipper Virat Kohli and chairman of selectors MSK Prasad," a senior BCCI official told the Press Trust of India.

The departure of Dhoni open doors for young wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant, as the selectors were expected to drop the 38-year-old World Cup winning captain from the squad for the West Indies tour.