MS Dhoni gave Indian fans the moment they had been waiting for 28 years. Winning the world cup was a dream for every fan. Indian cricket loyalists remember that game at the Wankhede as it was just yesterday. India’s ‘Captain Cool’ lead from the front and finished off the game in typical Dhoni fashion.

He is often described as the man with the Midas touch, and rightly so. There is no prize in international cricket that India hasn’t won under his leadership. The World Cup, World T20, Champions Trophy, Asia Cup, #1 spot in ICC Test rankings, IPL, Champions League T20 have all been conquered by him.

Came in at the right time

Dhoni lead a very young Indian team in the World T20 in 2007. The big guns, Tendulkar, Ganguly and Dravid had to skip the event in order to give the youngsters a chance. There was low expectations from the fans since most of the squad was inexperienced. But Dhoni made them look like a completely different breed. They were energetic on the field, ran quickly between the wickets and looked fearless at whatever they did.

The moment which stands-out, and sums up Dhoni’s character is the last over of the final. Joginder Sharma was under tremendous pressure against Misbah-ul-Haq, who was smashing every bowler out of sight. He bowled a couple of wayward deliveries and was clearly losing the plot. Dhoni went up to him, put his hands on his shoulders and calmed him down. Rest, as they say is “history”. 

The timing of Rahul Dravid’s resignation from captaincy couldn’t have come at a better time. There was belief in Dhoni’s leadership in the fans. On top of that, he would have so many experienced players around, to guide him during the early stages of his captaincy.

Belief in youth

Dhoni is known for his tremendous faith in young players. Ahead of the Commonwealth Bank series in Australia, he wanted Ganguly and Dravid dropped from the team, considering fitness reasons. He wanted players who were lightning quick on the field and were ready by the time the next world cup came. His decision was proven correct when India won the famous tri-series down-under.

He budded in players like Virat Kohli and Suresh Raina in the team soon. Dhoni had a clear road-map ahead of the 2011 World Cup to be hosted by the subcontinent teams. He wanted all his players to have at least 150 matches under their belt before the tournament. 

The youngsters proved his decision right as India won the ICC World Cup in 2011 after a gap of 28 years. India made up for the shocker in the Caribbean in 2007. The squad is probably the strongest, one has seen in all these years watching India play. A rock-solid batting order followed by a bowling attack which was erratic but when on song capable of immense damage to the best of batting line-ups.

More success stories

Even though he had been replacing all the older players in his ODI squad with youngsters, it wasn’t the same in Test matches. He retained all the senior players and lead India to #1 spot in the ICC Test Rankings. The team had series wins in the Caribbean, New Zealand and won the Border-Gavaskar trophy in 2008, 2010 and 2013 (a 4-0 whitewash). India became unbeatable at home. Unfortunately they couldn’t emulate this success abroad where they lost to both England and Australia in a humiliating fashion. And, England also got the better of the Indian team in India.

Dhoni’s team won the Aisa Cup in 2010 after a gap of 15 years. He completed the full set of ICC international hounors after India won the Champions Trophy in England in 2013. In doing so he became the first captain to win all 3 ICC tournaments. India were unbeaten in the entire tournament. In 2016, India won the first Asia Cup T20 tournament, hosted in Bangladesh.

M.S. Dhoni’s Chennai Super Kings were arguably the most consistent team in the Indian Premier League. They won the IPL on two occasions under his incredible leadership. They also went on to win the Champions League T20, where they overcame some of the best T20 domestic teams around the world.

One of the greats

Dhoni has enjoyed a career that many can only dream of. He has achieved everything a captain can achieve. The success he brought to the team are unbelievable. It will only be fitting if Dhoni ends his captaincy with another World Cup win in 2019, in England.

MS Dhoni has been an icon of India cricket. His leadership has laid the bedrock for future captain, Virat Kohli to strive upon. There is no doubt that when M.S. Dhoni calls it a day, he will go down as the one of the greatest players India has produced. The same level as Sachin Tendulkar, Kapil Dev and Sunil Gavaskar. But the good news is that there is still time for that. Hopefully there are many more moments of joy and celebrations for the fans ahead.