Looking back at 15 years of MS Dhoni in our lives
India had just lost the wicket of Sridharan Sriram and were in a spot of bother at 180 for five in the first ODI against Bangladesh at Chattogram in 2004. In came debutant Mahendra Singh Dhoni from Ranchi to join Mohammad Kaif in the middle. A slight tickle towards fine leg off the first ball by Mohammad Rafique and the debutant should've scored his first runs in international cricket. However, Tapash Baisya released the ball in no time only for wicketkeeper Khaled Mashud to dislodge the bails. A disgruntled Dhoni returned with a first-ball duck in his first international game.
15 years and 17266 runs later, Dhoni has successfully established himself as one of the most sought-after sporting personalities of the country. His runs have come at an average of 44.96 in 538 matches and stand gloriously alongside 829 dismissals behind the stumps.
A T20 World Cup win in 2007, ODI World Cup victory in 2011, ICC Champions Trophy win in 2013 and World Test ranking of number one are some of the achievements under Dhoni's captaincy apart from leading Chennai Super Kings to three Indian Premier League titles.
The one who turned it around
After India's disastrous ouster from the 50-over World Cup early in 2007, the Dhoni-led contingent emerged as the champions in the maiden edition of the T20 World Cup and thereafter the transition at the helm in limited-overs cricket was a smooth process.
Rahul Dravid recognized the potential in the Ranchi man and gave up the ODI captaincy, while the Test team was led by Anil Kumble in the coming year. Soon Dhoni took over in all the formats but his journey in Test cricket as a leader and batsman came under scrutiny. India lost eight straight away Tests and followed it up with 1-2 series loss to England at home during the 2012-13 season.
Unperturbed by the commotion created by the media, Dhoni showed great composure and scored one of his best Test innings in the Chennai Test against Australia in 2013. His 224 runs at the Chepauk resulted in an eight-wicket win for the hosts.
However, two series losses in South Africa and New Zealand and then a disappointing 1-3 loss in England during India's rebuilding phase put Dhoni under the scanner once more. His Test career came to a surprising halt when he announced his retirement mid-way during the Australia tour in 2014. Coming in at number three, his crucial knock of 91 runs in the final of the 2011 World Cup in Mumbai is considered by many as Dhoni's best with the bat. Dhoni went on to captain India in 60 Tests, 200 ODIs and 72 T20Is, winning 27, 110 and 42 matches respectively in all three formats.
A keeper of reckoning too
The former Indian captain also filled the gap for India behind the stumps. At a time when the national team were dependent on the services of Rahul Dravid and a 16-year old Parthiv Patel for keeping, Dhoni made the position his own with consistent wicket-keeping performances.
Handling perhaps the most scrutinized jobs in Indian cricket, along-with his constant chirping from behind the stumps and explosive strokeplay, a player with such a calm persona comes once in a generation. But it might be time for the swansong, time for curtains to come down on a glittering career. And with no game under his belt since the World Cup earlier in the year, life might have already come a full circle after Dhoni's heart-wrenching run-out in his last innings in Indian colors.
