MS Dhoni scored ten hundreds in his ODI career, nine of which came for India - the most by an Indian wicketkeeper. We have ranked each of his ODI hundreds from worst to best.
Dhoni scored 10,773 runs from 350 ODIs and is one of only two wicketkeepers (Kumar Sangakkara is the other) to cross the 10,000-run mark in the format. With a 1,000-run cut-off, only two wicketkeepers have a higher average than Dhoni's 50.57: AB de Villiers (2,963 runs @ 70.54) and KL Rahul (1,578 runs @ 54.41).
Globally, Dhoni ranks joint-sixth on the list of most ODI hundreds by wicketkeepers. In terms of 50-plus scores, he is second (83) after Sangakkara (114). Seven of his ten hundreds came in victories, and three in defeats. Nagpur and Chennai are the only venues where he has scored more than one ODI hundred (two each). Clearly his best format among the three, here's a ranking of Dhoni's ten ODI hundreds.
Also read: Virat Kohli's ODI hundreds, ranked from worst to best
10. 109 vs Hong Kong, Karachi, 2007
Dhoni's fourth ODI hundred, it came against the weakest attack on this list. Batting first, Virender Sehwag (78 off 44) and Gautam Gambhir (51 off 54) provided the perfect platform for Dhoni to come in at four and take Hong Kong to the cleaners. Suresh Raina also scored a ton (101 off 68) as India scored 374-4.
9. 101* vs Bangladesh, Mirpur, 2010
Chasing 297 in Mirpur, Dhoni came in at No.5 with the score reading 51-3. Against a Bangladesh attack comprising Abdur Razzak, Rubel Hossain, and Shakib Al Hasan, Dhoni first added 152 with Virat Kohli (91 off 102) for the fourth wicket before finishing off the chase with a 94-run partnership with Raina (51 off 43).
8. 107 vs Sri Lanka, Nagpur, 2009
One of Dhoni's three hundreds that came in a defeat. The India captain walked out at 81-3 after 16.5 overs. With Kohli (54) and Raina (68) scoring fifties either side of him, he had the support and platform to go really big, but couldn't press on the accelerator as well as he would have liked, scoring 107 of 111 balls as India finished on 301-7. Sri Lanka won the match with three wickets and five balls remaining. Dhoni could (and should) have scored more.
7. 124 vs Australia, Nagpur, 2009
Another Nagpur ton, this one came about a month before the one against Sri Lanka. A similar setup as the Sri Lanka match, Dhoni was able to find the right gears in this game as he finished with a strike rate of 115.8, taking India to 354-7, more than enough to win the match.
6. 139* vs Africa XI, Chennai, 2007
Playing for Asia XI, Dhoni batted at No.7 after the top order collapsed to 72-5 in 16.4 overs. However, along with captain Mahela Jayawardene (107 off 106), he added a record 218 runs for the sixth wicket, himself scoring a blistering 139 not out off 97 balls, his quickest 100-plus knock in ODIs and at that point the highest score from anyone batting outside the top six. The bowling attack wasn't the strongest though, with Morne Morkel, Peter Ongondo, Elton Chigumbura, and Johan Botha bowling ten overs each.
5. 134 vs England, Cuttack, 2017
Dhoni's last ODI hundred, in his first series after he stepped down as white-ball captain, came four years after his ninth. After losing the top three of Rohit, Kohli, and Dhawan, Dhoni joined Yuvraj at the crease in the fifth over. From there, the two sent the English bowlers on a leather hunt, adding 256 for the fourth wicket in 38.2 overs. Yuvraj made a career best of 150, while Dhoni scored 134 off 122. India made 381-6, and were given a scare by England before they fell 15 short.
4. 139* vs Australia, Mohali, 2013
Another hundred that resulted in a defeat, this was one of Dhoni's typical one-man shows. Batting first, India were reduced to 76-4 in the 13th over when Dhoni came out to bat. When Kohli (68) departed, India still had 20.2 overs to bat with only five wickets in hand. They scored 155, of which 104 came off Dhoni's bat as he finished unbeaten on 139 off 121. It didn't prove enough though as Australia chased the target of 304 with four wickets and three balls remaining.
3. 148 vs Pakistan, Visakhapatnam, 2005
It was a close call between the third spot and the second for Dhoni's first ODI hundred. Promoted to No.3, this was the knock that announced Dhoni's arrival to international cricket. Playing just his fifth match, he took on a bowling attack of Mohammad Sami, Naved-ul-Hasan, Abdul Razzaq, and Shahid Afridi, hitting 15 fours and four sixes. India scored 356-9, Pakistan scored 298, and the world was introduced to MS Dhoni.
2. 113* vs Pakistan, Chennai, 2012
One of the finest rearguard acts in ODIs, Dhoni came out to bat at 29-5 after India collapsed like ninepins to Junaid Khan's swing and seam in his adopted home of Chennai. As Raina struggled to 43 off 88 at the other end, Dhoni cut all risk, knowing it was the last recognised pair of batters. After Raina fell at the score of 102 in the 34th over, Dhoni and Ashwin stitched an unbeaten 125-run stand in 100 balls to take India to a competitive total of 227. They fought hard, but could not defend the score in the end, as Pakistan won by six wicket with 11 balls remaining.
1. 183* vs Sri Lanka, Jaipur, 2005
Till date the highest individual ODI score by a wicketkeeper. If the 148 against Pakistan introduced world cricket to Dhoni, the 183 off 145 against Sri Lanka stamped his authority and instilled fear in the minds of opponents that would linger for years to come. Chasing 299, Dhoni smashed 15 fours and 10 sixes as India won with 3.5 overs remaining. While Dhoni scored at a rate of 126, the rest of the team scored at 77.3. All of this against a bowling attack that had Chaminda Vaas, Muttiah Muralidaran, Upul Chandana, Farveez Maharoof, and Dilhara Fernando.
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