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The Ten: Defining moments of MS Dhoni’s international career

by Henry Clark
@HenryWAClark 5 minute read

As MS Dhoni, one of India’s most revered players bids adieu to international cricket, we take a look at the ten moments which will see the pioneering wicketkeeper-batsmen go down as one of all-time greats.

1. A memorable start to his ODI career

After being dismissed on ODI debut for a golden duck in December 2004, Dhoni was sure to make the year that followed memorable for the right reasons.

The next 12 months of his international career included monumental scores of 148 against Pakistan and 183* versus Sri Lanka to mark the birth of an Indian cricket superstar of the future. He finished the year with 895 runs at 49.72, while also winning the Man of the series award in the seven-match home series against Sri Lanka.

2. Winning the first-ever World T20

Dhoni was chosen by the BCCI selectors to lead his nation into the inaugural World T20 in 2007 in South Africa. He led a young squad all the way to the final where they faced arch-rivals Pakistan in a closely fought affair.

With Pakistan needing 13 runs to win with just one wicket remaining, Dhoni made a bold call to throw the ball to inexperienced seamer Joginder Sharma. His faith was rewarded as Misbah-ul-Haq’s attempted ramp shot could only fall straight into the hands of Shanthakumaran Sreesanth to hand India the title.

3. Ordering his team not to celebrate

With India on the verge of defeating Australia at the MCG in 2008, the Indian dressing room was preparing to celebrate the impending victory.

But Dhoni, who was just 15 games into his ODI captaincy, ordered his teammates not to go over-the-top with their celebrations. He wanted to send a message to the opposition that this was not a fluke and there was no reason to celebrate the win as if it was an upset.

In his book The Dhoni Touch, Bharat Sundaresan recounted what Dhoni, who was out in the middle at the time, told his young teammate Rohit Sharma: “Meanwhile, in the middle, Dhoni was handing down instructions to Rohit, on how the youngster should conduct himself while shaking hands with the Aussies once the match got over.

“He wanted it to be as tepid as possible. ‘When they give their hand, just firmly hold yours out without folding it like an obligation, but don’t overdo it. And just stare blankly at them without any hint of excitement’.”

4. Leading India to the No.1 Test ranking

Dhoni receives the Test Championship mace from ICC Chief Executive Haroon Lorgat

India have been blessed with some of the finest captains to grace the game but none of them had managed to achieve what Dhoni did in 2009. He took India to the number one spot in the ICC Test world rankings for the first time in their 85-year Test history, a position they retained for 18 months under his guidance.

5. Sealing India’s first World Cup in 28 years

Dhoni had his struggles in the tournament with the bat but nevertheless led his side all the way to the final in the 2011 Cricket World Cup. Chasing a target of 275 in title clash against Sri Lanka, Dhoni, having promoted himself ahead of eventual Player of the Tournament Yuvraj Singh, joined forces with Gautam Gambhir to power India to their first World Cup win since 1983.

It was Dhoni, though, whose 91*, which included finishing the game with an iconic six, stole the headlines as he was named Player of the Final in a historic day for his country.

6. 112-metre six versus Australia

With India needing 13 runs off the last over being bowled by Aussie pacer Clint McKay, Ravi Ashwin was only able to muster one run from the first two balls to get Dhoni on strike.

Dhoni displayed the composure which has made him one of the best finishers in world cricket to smash a full-length delivery from McKay over long-on to put his side on course for victory. The six, measured at 112 metres long, is one of the longest ever recorded at the Adelaide Oval.

In typical Dhoni fashion, ‘Captain Cool’ finished the game with two balls to spare to seal an unlikely victory.

7. India’s 4th double centurion as captain

Although his achievements in the shorter formats of the game will be remembered more fondly, in 2013 he became just the fourth India captain to make a Test double hundred. His maiden double century against Australia in Chennai included 24 fours and six sixes and remains the highest Test score struck by a wicketkeeper captain in Test cricket.

It was an important innings too. Australia had made 380 innings, and when India stood at 406-8, it seemed they would garner only a small lead. Dhoni’s blitz propelled India to a daunting 572, a first innings lead of 192 to set up an eight-wicket win. India subsequently took the series 4-0, thereby becoming the first team to whitewash Australia in a series of three Tests or more, since 1970.

8. Taking India to the ICC treble

In winning the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy, Dhoni became the first and only captain in international cricket to win all three major ICC trophies. Despite being dismissed for a duck in India’s final win over hosts England, Dhoni contributed with his valuable expertise in a game hampered by rain, helping India defend a modest 129-7.

He was named as captain and wicketkeeper in the ICC’s ‘Team of the Tournament’ to cap off a remarkable captaincy feat.

9. Pioneering the no-look run-out

During India’s tour of New Zealand in 2016, Dhoni pulled off the first of his many remarkable no-look run-outs. Kiwi batsman Ross Taylor was the unfortunate party on this occasion as Dhoni cleverly flicked Dhawal Kulkarni’s throw from short fine-leg onto the stumps without even looking. Had he collected the ball in the traditional style, Taylor would likely have made his ground.

10. Taylor once again victim to Dhoni’s lightning hands

Poor old Taylor was once again victim to Dhoni’s brilliance behind the stumps, this time in the 2019 ODI series. Kedar Jadhav beat Taylor’s edge, leaving the New Zealand batsman ever-so-slightly overbalanced. His back foot raised for no more than a few milliseconds but that was all that Dhoni needed to whip off the bails and send Taylor on his way.

 

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