One of India’s best cricketers of all time, and the evergreen ‘cool captain’ MS Dhoni turned 43 on 7th July 2024. Only captain in the world to win all three ICC white-ball trophies, MS Dhoni had a gala time, celebrating his 43rd birthday, the video of which was shared by his wife on social media. The hilarious video became trending on social media after Sakshi was seen touching Dhoni’s feet in an epic manner, before folding her hands in front of him. In the video, Dhoni also asked if the cake was egg-free, probably out of concern for his vegetarian friends.
Dhoni needs no introduction in the world of cricket and is famous for his calm and impressive captaincy skills on the field in his international and IPL days. On August 15, 2020, Dhoni announced his retirement from all forms of cricket, bringing the curtains down on an illustrious career.
Under Dhoni’s leadership, India won the top prize across all formats. Under his captaincy, India topped the Test rankings for 18 months starting in December 2009. The team won the 50-over World Cup in 2011 and the World T20 title on his captaincy debut in 2007.
Dhoni has had one of the most inspiring journeys in the history of the sport. After working as a ticket collector at a railway station, he became India’s biggest trophy collector, leading the team to the 2007 ICC T20 World Cup, the 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup and the 2011 ICC Champions Trophy. 2013 ICC as captain. He made his international debut in 2004 and became known as a ferocious cricket ball hitter, but matured over time and became a finisher who would guide his team to victories with his calculated aggression and incredible tactics.
Dhoni, known as “Thala” (leader) of Chennai Super Kings, played 98 T20Is for India, scoring 1,617 runs at an average of 37.60, and a strike rate of 126.13. He has two half-centuries in the format, with a best score of 56.
Coming to his long career, Dhoni has played 90 matches, scoring 4,876 runs at an average of 38.09. He has scored six centuries and 33 half-centuries, with a best score of 224. He is India’s 14th highest scorer in Tests.
As captain, he led India in 60 Test matches, of which he won 27 matches, lost 18 and drew 15. With a winning percentage of 45.00, he is one of India’s most successful captains of all eras. He led team India to first place in the ICC Test rankings. He is also the only Indian captain to whitewash Australia in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, doing so in the 2010-11 and 2012-13 series.
The people’s favorite ‘Mahi’ led India in 72 T20Is, winning 41, losing 28, one drawn and two failing to produce results. His winning percentage is 56.94.
Apart from guiding India to ICC titles, he also guided Chennai Super Kings (CSK) to franchise glory in the Indian Premier League (IPL) and the T20 Champions League. He led CSK to five IPL titles in 2010, 2011, 2018, 2021 and 2023. Dhoni also led CSK to two CLT20 titles in 2010 and 2014.
Dhoni has played 264 IPL matches, mainly for CSK, barring a stint with Rising Pune Supergiant in 2016 to 2017. In these matches, he scored 5,243 runs at an average of 39.13. He also scored 24 half-centuries in the tournament. He also has 152 receptions and 42 hits.
With these astonishing statistics as a middle-order batsman and his success as a captain, it is unlikely that India and world cricket, in general, will ever again witness a phenomenon like ‘captain cool’.
With ANI inputs
Topics mentioned in this article
This story originally appeared on ndtv.com read the full story
