MS Dhoni has begun his two-month training with Indian Army Parachute Regiment 106 Territorial Army Battalion. The Indian cricketer joined the regiment in Kashmir Valley on Wednesday and will continue his training till August 15, 2019. The 38-year-old holds the honorary rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the Territorial Army unit of the Parachute Regiment (106 Para TA battalion). During the training, Dhoni will undertake the patrolling duties. Amrapali Group Case: Home Buyers' Money Diverted to MS Dhoni, Sakshi's Company, Says Supreme Court. 

Reports claimed that the Indian wicket-keeper will perform duties of patrolling, guard and post duty during his training period with the battalion. The battalion has headquarters in Bengaluru. The Ranchi cricketer was given the rank in the battalion by the Indian Army in 2011. Along with Shooter Abhinav Bindra and Deepak Rao, Dhoni was accorded with the honour. Dhoni had successfully completed five training jumps from Indian Army aircraft in Agra training camp in 2015, thereby, becoming a qualified paratrooper.

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Dhoni had also made him unavailable for India vs West Indies Tour 2019 due to the training. He had informed about his decision to BCCI. Later, the squad for the West Indies series was announced by BCCI. In the absence of Dhoni, Rishabh Pant was selected as the wicketkeeper for the tour.

Meanwhile, the Indian team will play three T20s, three ODIs and two Tests against West Indies starting August 3, 2019. Other than Dhoni, Hardik Pandya will also be absent from the tour as he has been given rest. Virat Kohli will lead the team as captain in all the three series. West Indies has called Sunil Narine and Kieron Pollard for the series against India.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 25, 2019 03:23 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).