The news every cricket fan had been dreading for a long, long time, eventually broke on a lazy Saturday evening when most of us were confined to our homes thanks to a global pandemic. Without any kind of a build-up or even a press release, in his own signature style, India’s most successful cricket captain announced his departure from international competitions leaving his fans in shock and pain as even the prospect of never seeing Captain Cool in that blue jersey again leaves his devout fans teary-eyed. For any other cricketer whose international career started and ended with a run out, it would’ve been difficult to define them in any other way but since it is Dhoni — the man who brought the World Cup to a land where the game is a religion, twice — he would be remembered for everything that happened in between. The Telegraph takes a look at the iconic wicketkeeper-batsman’s illustrious international career.
Moments
A forgettable debut
Mahi made his international debut against Bangladesh in an ODI match in Chittagong in 2004. Though he was run out fairly early in the game, little did one know that the tall and lanky batsman from Ranchi would lead India to world domination pretty soon.
A knock to remember
Carrying the weight of his dismal performance on his debut, Dhoni was in dire need of a substantial performance. His first international century —148 off 153 balls against Pakistan in 2005 — silenced his critics and gave the Indian side hope of finding a reliable wicketkeeper-batsman, in what had been a long struggle.
An unlikely skipper
The period from 2004 to 2007 in Dhoni’s international career was full of peaks and troughs. So, it was only natural for experts to question his capability when he was picked captain of the young Indian side that lacked the collective experience and cricket intellect of The Trio — Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly. Not to be deterred by naysayers and critics, a young, long-haired Dhoni not only led India to a glorious victory in the inaugural World T20 Cup but also made an early case for his Captain Cool moniker.
Beginning of an era
For many cricket fans, the 2008 Commonwealth Bank Series marked a tectonic shift in Indian cricket. The omission of key players in the team and the timing of the process raised many questions on Dhoni’s decision-making. Looking back, however, the CB Series victory in Australia marked the beginning of the Dhoni era in Indian cricket.
Glimpse of greatness
After winning the World T20 Cup and proving his capability as a super skipper, Dhoni officially took over the reigns of the Test side in 2008. His impeccable leadership quality and naturally gifted talent of reading the players helped him push the Indian side to the World Number One ranking in 2009, a first for an Indian captain. The domination continued for over 600 days, from 2009 to 2011.
The world at his feet
Mahi’s six off Sri Lankan fast bowler Nuwan Kulasekara on the night of April 2, 2011, that landed comfortably in a raucous crowd at Wankhede Stadium, is a memory forever etched in our collective conscious. After all, it was after 28 long years that the World Cup was back in India. Dhoni’s tactical decision to come up the order and a winning knock of 91 off 79 balls earned him the ‘Man of the Match’ award.
The holy trifectas
After a series of disastrous tours of England and Australia followed by an embarrassing loss to England on home soil, Dhoni bounced back in an unprecedented manner. Under his reformed captaincy, India went on to win the 2013 Champions Trophy, making him the first and only captain to win all three limited-overs ICC trophies — the ODI World Cup, World T20 Cup and the Champions Trophy.
Test retirement
After leading many successful campaigns and guiding India towards world dominance, Dhoni retired from Test cricket in December 2014, which eventually gave a chance to waiting-in-the wings Wriddhiman Saha. His illustrious Test career comprise 90 international caps 4,876 runs at an average of 38.09.
Last hoorah
After handing over the reins of the ODI team to Virat Kohli in 2017 and an impressive performance at the tour of Australia, Mahi faced scrutiny yet again as he failed to capitalise on crucial situations during the ICC World Cup 2019 campaign. In his last international ODI — the semi-final against an inspired New Zealand — Mahi was the guiding star of India’s fightback but was run out at a crucial moment, resulting in a billion heartbreak. We all knew that it could be the last time we saw Dhoni in an ODI contest — a career that had amassed 10,773 runs, scored at an average of 50.57 in 350 matches.
A second coming
After struggling as a middle-order batsman failing to finish matches for India with his power hits and a lean 2018 season, Dhoni soon bounced back in form with match-winning contributions during the ODI series of India’s Tour of Australia where his power knocks earned him the Player of the Series award.
Dhoni Review System
Dhoni’s impeccable speed makes him see things that even the umpire misses at times! Here are three instances where Dhoni’s Decision Review System appeals proved to be a shocker.
Vs Pakistan, 2018
Dhoni’s instincts proved crucial during India’s Asian Cup campaign in 2018. After the umpire ruled Pakistan’s Imam-ul-Haq a ‘not out’ for LBW, Dhoni insisted that skipper Rohit Sharma opt for review. Of course the ball was directly in line with stumps!
Vs England, 2018
This time, Dhoni had to use his eagle eyes to save his own wicket. In the 32nd over of India vs England ODI match at Headingley Stadium in Leeds, England’s Moeen Ali caught Mahi off guard with a ripper of a delivery and appealed for an LBW, to which the umpire agreed. Due to Dhoni’s quick calculation, he reviewed the decision. Not out!
Vs KKR, 2018
In a 2018 Indian Premier League fixture, when CSK’s Lungi Ngidi appealed for KKR’s Chris Lynn catch, the umpire signalled ‘not out’ as he believed that the ball had only touched the pad. Mahi, however, had heard an inaudible click and appealed for a review. The bat had in fact nicked the ball.