Background

Born on July 7th, 1981 in Ranchi Jharkhand (India) and did his schooling at DAV Jawahar Vidya Mandir, Shyamali, Jharkhand. He was very good at football and badminton during his school days. In his school team, he was the football goalkeeper. Once his coach pushed him to play cricket and try wicketkeeping. To his surprise, he played amazingly well. from there on, he took up cricket seriously and played for the Commando cricket club.

After completing his studies at DAV, he started representing the Central Coal Fields Limited team in 1998. Then he started playing in Bihar’s U-19 team and then debuted in Ranji Trophy in 1999-2000 and represented Bihar. His good cricket scores led him to a Train Ticket Examiner job and he was appointed in 2001 at Kharagpur railway station in West Bengal. He was known for his performance in the 2002-03 Ranji Trophy.

First Appearance

He debuted in the Indian Cricket team in 2004, at the age of 23. He made one of the worst debuts as he ducked in his first match. But even when he has an ordinary performance in the inaugural Bangladesh series, he was chosen for the Pakistan series. Dhoni turned out to be a very solid performer also because he was also an amazing batsman. He scored 148 off 123 deliveries in his fifth ODI in Vishakhapatnam. He amazed everyone with his cricket skills.

His amazing performance in one day international against Sri Lanka gave him the opportunity to become a test captain and replace wicketkeeper Dinesh Kartik in Dec 2005. Dhoni scored their maiden half-century in the second Test. In September 2007, Dhoni became India’s T20 world captain and Men in Blue became champions.

Ascend to Glory

Dhoni made a few tough decisions and phase out seniors. He then led India to their second Champions Trophy triumph as the Indian team was unbeatable. This win made him the first-ever Indian captain to win all three major ICC global trophies.

Mahi is also IPL’s team, Chennai Super Kings captain who has become four times champions. This team is considered one of the most successful teams in the history of the Indian Premier League.

He is a reliable batsman. His no.7 batting against Pakistan in Chennai is unforgettable. Mahi scored 113 runs when India was 29/5. MS Dhoni set an example as a captain and as an amazing player who always showed sports spirit.

Low Point

Dhoni’s captaincy was questioned after the ICC World Cup because the team had 8 successive losses in England and Australia. Unfortunately, India’s poor test performance continued into one-day international as well.

In the 2015 India vs. Bangladesh match, Bangladesh bowler Mustafizur Rahman deliberately came underway as Dhoni ran for a single. Both clashed in the middle of the pitch but it seemed as if Mahi elbowed him.

In another incident in 2013, Mahi lost his cool during an IPL match against Rajasthan Royals. The in-field umpire called the ball waist height no ball but the square umpire, Bruce Oxenford overruled the decision and no ball wasn’t given. Angry Dhoni entered the field and discussed with the umpired but unfortunately, no ball wasn’t granted. He was fined 75% of the match fee.

Captaincy

With a cool and mature mind, he is known as ‘Captain Cool. Senior players like Sachin & Rahul Dravid recommended him as a captain. Besides the Indian team, he is also the captain of IPL Chennai Super Kings who has successfully won matches in 2010, 2011, 2018, & 2021.

During the first ICC T20 in 2007, his young team surprised the world with a smashing historic win. His calm and composure attitude was widely appreciated by everyone as India brought home the World Cup T20 Trophy. Post that, he was handed over the ODI leadership and Test leadership as Anil Kumble retired in late 2008.

MS Dhoni played exceptionally well during his captaincy debut in the test series. He won the home series against Australia and a 1-0 triumph in New Zealand in 2009 and a 2-0 victory against Sri Lanka at home. Under his captaincy, India continued to win matches and dominate the home-ground series.

Dhoni was praised for making a winning team that played well no matter whether it was a T20, ODI, or test match. His captaincy reached the pinnacle of success when he lifted the 2011 World Cup.

Retirement

Mahendra Singh Dhoni announced his retirement from international cricket on 15 August 2020. In 2014-15, he played his last test series against Australia while captaining India. He lost the second and the third one was a draw (2-0). The last test series he played was commendable as he took eight catches and one stumping and set a record by breaking Kumar Sangakkara's record.

With this, he set a record for maximum dismissals by an Indian wicketkeeper, which was later broken by Wriddhiman Saha in 2018. His last innings were incredible as it was 24 not out.