The Indian cricket team suffered a bitter semi-final defeat against New Zealand in the 2019 ODI World Cup. The result continued to bother Indian fans all across the globe, especially as the team had done wonders until the penultimate hurdle. Many still wonder what the result would’ve been if New Zealand’s Martin Guptill had not run out MS Dhoni in the match. The contest turned out to be MS Dhoni’s last as he chose to hang up his boots from international cricket a few months after the event ended. Years have passed since the infamous heartbreak, and Dhoni has finally opened up on his pain of failure to not lift the title in 2019.

In a video that has emerged on social media, Dhoni could be heard recalling the disappointment, saying it took some time for him to get over the pain of losing the 2019 ODI World Cup semi-final.

“It was a difficult one because I knew that this will be my last World Cup, so it would have been good to be on the winning side. It was heartbreak moment, so we accepted the result and we tried to move on. Time thoda lagta hai aur World Cup ke baad thoda time mil bhi jata hai. Maine toh uske baad international khela nahi hai toh mujhe toh kaafi time mila hai. (It takes time and one gets some time after the World Cup. I haven’t played any international after that, so I got a lot of time). So, yes, it was a heartbreak but at the same time you have to get out of it. So you just accept that you tried your best, but you were not able to win it,” he said.

MS Dhoni On 2019 World Cup Semi Final#MSDhoni pic.twitter.com/HAiXWBivef

— Chakri Dhoni (@ChakriDhonii) July 31, 2024

While Dhoni is no longer an international cricketer, he continues to play in the Indian Premier League for his franchise Chennai Super Kings. His participation in the IPL 2025 season, however, isn’t yet completely clear.