'Gives to his country beyond duty' - Sheldon Cottrell salutes MS Dhoni's 'love for his homeland'

Sheldon Cottrell, the West Indies left-arm pacer has entertained cricketing audiences the world over with his wicket celebrations. Each time Cottrell takes a wicket, be it in any format, he marches down the pitch and offers a salute towards the dressing room. In the past, Cottrell had explained the logic behind his celebrations stating that he was a soldier by profession. "It’s a military-style salute. I’m a soldier by profession. Me saluting is just to show my respect to the Jamaica Defence Force. I do it every time I get a wicket. I practised it for six months when I was training in the army," Cottrell had told the BBC earlier in the year.

Recently on Twitter, Cottrell has hailed former India skipper MS Dhoni not just for his cricketing skill but also for the love he has shown towards his country by sharing a video from 2018, when the Indian wicket-keeper batsman was conferred the Padma Bhushan, the country's highest civilian award, by President Ramnath Kovind at the Rashtrapati Bhawan.

In a series of Tweets, Cottrell wrote, "This man is an inspiration on the cricket field. But he is also a patriot and a man that gives to his country beyond duty. I have been at home in Jamaica with my boys these past weeks and had time to reflect. I shared this video with friends and family because they know how I feel about honour but the moment between wife and husband truly shows an inspirational kind of love for country and partner. Please enjoy as I did."

This man is an inspiration on the cricket field. But he is also a patriot and a man that gives to his country beyond duty. I have been at home in Jamaica with my boys these past weeks and had time to reflect (1/2)

— Sheldon Cotterell (@SaluteCotterell) July 28, 2019

I shared this video with friends and family because they know how I feel about honour but the moment between wife and husband truly shows an inspirational kind of love for country and partner. Please enjoy as I did. pic.twitter.com/Pre28KWAFD

— Sheldon Cotterell (@SaluteCotterell) July 28, 2019

Cottrell and Dhoni are soldiers for their respective nations. While Cottrell undertook training with the Jamaican Defence Forces for six months, Dhoni is an honourary Lieutenant Colonel in the Territorial Army. He is also a qualified paratrooper after having completed five parachute training jumps.

Also Read | Explained - India's World Test Championship schedule and points structure

Dhoni, who opted out of the upcoming tour of the West Indies, will carry out patrolling and guard duties with troops during his 15-day stint with a Territorial Army battalion in the Kashmir Valley. He will be joining the 106 TA Battalion (Para) on July 31 and will continue until August 15.

Also Read | Test championship is coming at the right time for cricket: Virat Kohli

Recently, Dhoni was in the news during the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 when he was spotted wearing a 'Balidaan' badge on his gloves and the ICC requested the BCCI to get the symbol removed from Dhoni's gloves. The #IndiaWithDhoni and #KeepTheGlove hashtags started trending on Twitter. Many people urged Dhoni to keep wearing the glove. Many media outlets, in the garb of hypernationalism, propagated that Dhoni should not let the ICC dictate terms and that he should keep the glove. Many others urged the ICC to focus on umpiring blunders and stay off Dhoni’s gloves.

In the end, the ICC told the BCCI that the symbol was not permitted to be worn on his wicket-keeping gloves and the regulations do not permit any individual message or logo to be displayed on any items of clothing or equipment.

RELATED

HIGHLIGHTS

• MS Dhoni is an honourary Lieutenant Colonel in the Indian Territorial Army.
• Sheldon Cottrell trained with the Jamaican Defence Forces for six months.
• MS Dhoni also sported the Balidaan Insignia on his gloves during 2019 World Cup.