MS Dhoni - More than an incredible player, he was a phenomenon in Indian cricket

Finally, Mahendra Singh Dhoni called it quits. It was something that kept millions of cricket fans wondering. The man nearly made history when he scripted an unbelievable run chase with Ravindra Jadeja in the semi-final of the 2019 World Cup against New Zealand in Manchester. But the bus was eventually missed by a whisker as Martin Guptill’s throw did not miss the stumps to catch the seasoned keeper-batsman short of the crease. India were knocked out of the tournament with Dhoni, the hero of the 2011 WC final, remaining the tragic hero of two back-to-back WC semi-finals.

Whether the 39-year-old cricketer from Ranchi did the right thing by retiring now is an ongoing debate. While some felt he should have quit right after that semi-final, others felt he still had some cricket left in him and could make it to the Indian squad for the 2020 T20 World Cup in Australia which has now been canceled. The uncertainty over white-ball cricket because of the coronavirus pandemic made the end of the road imminent for the legendary former India captain, many believe. Whatever it is, Dhoni’s is now an ex-international cricketer and his disappointed fans have to live with that reality.

The more interesting question now rather is: How Indian cricket will remember the man? No other captain in the annals of India’s cricket history has such enviable track records as like Dhoni. He has given India world titles in all major formats and also guided his country to become the No.1 team in Tests. Personally, too, he has excelled both as a wicketkeeper (829 international scalps) and batsman (more than 17,000 runs with 10k-plus runs in ODIs) to be considered among the top performers the country has produced.

But is Dhoni only about winning trophies and top athletic skills that he displayed with the keeper’s gloves and the bat? India has seen the exit of a number of great players, some of them even bigger than Dhoni in terms of cricketing skills, but yet the Ranchi man’s departure holds a special significance in the country’s long and glorious history.

Under the street-smart Dhoni, India became a top limited-overs power

For Indian cricket in particular and its sports in general, Dhoni was a phenomenon. It is not that Dhoni was the first of the generation of cricketers in India who rose from a humble background to scale the heights. Starting from Kapil Dev’s 1983 triumph to the rise of Sachin Tendulkar to others like Rahul Dravid, Virender Sehwag, VVS Laxman to Yuvraj Singh, Harbhajan Singh and others — the project of democratization of cricket in India was already underway.

But Dhoni’s appeal lied in the fact that he not only rose from a modest background but took India to some of the biggest titles the game has in a short span of time. Dhoni certainly remains among those who get the lion share of the credit to make India one of the frontline limited-overs powers in world cricket. He also made India the No.1 side in the longer format but at the same time, Dhoni also tasted some of India’s worst defeats on foreign soils, like in England and Australia and they do hurt his legacy as a Test captain even though he is next only to Virat Kohli in terms of the win-loss records.

Dhoni’s street-smart approach to the game made him one of the best ambassadors of the limited-over formats. The man never showed off his emotions on the ground but was brilliant with the work he was supposed to do. He would also consider himself lucky to have got the opportunity to lead India in the 2007 World Twenty20 after a number of senior players pulled out.

It was a defining moment in the history of India’s cricket for just months after failing disastrously in the 50-over World Cup in the West Indies, India made a terrific comeback to show the world that it is still a force to reckon with and the revival was happening under MS Dhoni, then only 26. Nothing could have really settled the question of succession in Indian cricket as the glorious era of the Sourav Gangulys, Dravids and Tendulkars was entering its last leg.

It is often said that Dhoni reaped the benefits of the seeds that Ganguly had sown. While it is true in one sense, it can’t be denied either that the former did not squander the advantage that he had inherited. The man carried some tough responsibilities on his shoulders — captaincy in all formats, wicketkeeping and also one of the frontline batsmen of his team — and these never made him look vulnerable even when India competed in some of the toughest tournaments. The man’s composure in handling tough situations on and off the ground was one of the top reasons for his massive success.

Fitness became a buzzword in MSD era

Dhoni revolutionized the fitness culture in Indian cricket and there too lies a rich legacy of the man which is now being carried forward by Kohli. One cannot overlook the fact that Dhoni parallelly played in the Indian Premier League and succeeded both as a player and captain in that high-pressure arena as well. It never looked as if he was burning himself out in the summer carnival but rather it made him sharper while donning the blues for his country.

Dhoni’s story is all about a fairy-tale success of a small-town boy who followed his passion come what may. His is a story that a common Indian youth of today relate to easily. If other small-town boys made it big as players on the national and international stage, Dhoni led them all by winning big trophies for the country.

Yet, he hardly was seen courting controversies yet while acting tough as a captain on the ground. He is different from both his famous predecessor Ganguly and successor Kohli in terms of emotional outbursts on the ground and yet has more trophies than those in his cabinet. The man acted care-free with his own plans as a captain. MSD certainly rewrote the rule that success comes with aggression in today’s cricket.

India would have loved to see the man exiting the stage in a more grand way. The final scene of his glorious journey was not as cinematic as one had hoped. But MSD will remain an evergreen character in the entire cinema called Indian Cricket who not only entertained people with his incredible helicopter shots but also kept his feet planted on the ground even while tasting the ultimate success in life.