7 Occasions where MS Dhoni cost the match for India with his batting

There is no better player in the history than MS Dhoni when it comes to the job of finishing the games in the limited-overs cricket. The number of instances where Dhoni remained in successful chases makes him the most experienced player in such situations.

However, Dhoni’s performances as a finisher in his International cricket could easily be separated in two halves. In the first half, the former Indian captain was brute on most occasions but in recent times, he has been quite calculative which pushed India in troubles as well.

Here we look at seven instances from MS Dhoni’s International career when his batting cost the Indian team:

7. ODI vs Sri Lanka in Rajkot, 2007

Rajkot hosted the 2nd ODI between India and Sri Lanka during the 2007 4-match series after the first match in Kolkata ended without a result. The Indian pacers reduced Sri Lanka to 58/4 after winning the toss. However, Kumar Sangakkara smashed 11 fours and four maximums during his 127-ball 110 to power the Lankans to 257/8 with the help of partnerships with middle and lower-order batsmen. The fifties from Sourav Ganguly and Sachin Tendulkar put India in the drivers’ seat before they lost three quick wickets.

MS Dhoni was joined by Dinesh Karthik when India were 169/5 in 30 overs. The duo put on 66 from 94 balls for the 6th wicket as India were only 23 runs away from a win. At a stage, India needed only 38 runs from 9 overs but Dhoni did not show any urgency even after Karthik’s dismissal as RRR went over 6 from 4.22. Dhoni was batting on 43 off 63 balls having not hit a boundary ahead of the final over when India needed 11 runs to win.

India earned only one run despite Dhoni being strike on the first three balls and also saw Anil Kumble getting runout. MSD registered his first boundary of the innings by smashing one down the ground on the 4th ball of the over bowled by Sanath Jayasuriya. With six runs needed from the last two deliveries, Dhoni tried to clear the fence over the cover region but found the fielder in the deep. The last batsman Sreesanth failed to connect the final ball of the match as India lost by 5 runs.