5 instances when MS Dhoni single-handedly carried the Indian batting
Mahendra Singh Dhoni is arguably one of the most popular cricketers of India apart from Sachin Tendulkar. The wicket-keeper batsman is also the most scrutinised cricketer of the cricket crazy nation.
The current Indian limited overs captain came from the mining state of Jharkhand in the eastern part of India. The 34-year-old is considered as the most successful Indian captain and under Dhoni’s leadership India have won the top prizes in all the formats of the game.
The wicketkeeper-batsman is also the most successful wicket-keeper batsman of the country. He is hailed as the most prolific finishers of all-time in limited-overs cricket and his aggressive brand of batting can be described modestly as unorthodox but extremely effective.
Here we take a look at five instances when the star carried the team thanks to his batting.
#5. 124 vs Australia at Nagpur in 2009
On 28 October 2009, India played Australia in the 2nd match of a five-match bilateral ODI series in Nagpur. Australia won the toss and elected to field first in a traditionally sporting track and things did go according to their plan in the initial overs.
Both openers in the form of Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag returned to the pavilion rather quickly. The Indian captain walked to the crease when India were struggling at 97/3. Dhoni first formed a good partnership with Gautam Gambhir and then with Suresh Raina to help India post a big score of 354 on the board.
The unconventional batsman started off slow but after settling he launch himself into fifth gear. By the time he was out caught behind he accumulated 124 runs off just 107 balls and more importantly set up a solid platform for India to post a mammoth target.
The Ranchi-born batsman played the innings at the strike-rate of 115.88 and smashed 9 boundaries alongside three massive sixes. India eventually won the match by 99 runs and the Indian captain was rightfully awarded the player of the match.