Cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni has announced his retirement from international cricket. Taking to his social media pages on Saturday evening, the former skipper wrote, "Thanks. Thanks a lot for ur love and support throughout. From 1929 hrs consider me as Retired (sic)."

This marks the end of a great era in cricket. The 39-year-old cricketer captained the national team in limited-overs formats from 2007 to 2016 and in Test cricket from 2008 to 2014. He cultivated a huge fan base across the country by shepherding India to massive victories. "He is the only captain in the history of Cricket to win all ICC trophies. Under his captaincy, India won the 2007 ICC World Twenty20, the 2010 and 2016 Asia Cups, the 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup and the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy," a Wikipedia entry on MS Dhoni says.

His fans are pointing out on social media that Dhoni has chosen to retire on August 15, a special day for the entire country.