No other country has had as much debate over a player’s withdrawal from a tour in recent times as we have in India after Dhoni made himself unavailable for the Sri Lanka tour.

In 1971, Tiger Pataudi, after being replaced by Wadekar, withdrew from the tour of the West Indies. For this, the media portrayed him as a traitor and the antagonism spilled over to the public.

A decade later, Gavaskar too was criticised for not making himself available for the West Indies tour that was eventually called off.

Both Pataudi and Gavaskar gave different reasons for withdrawing. Pataudi claimed personal reasons and Gavaskar had wanted rest not only for himself but also his team-mates after having played 12 consecutive Tests. But the BCCI insisted on the West Indies tour commencing within a fortnight after Pakistan’s tour of India.