Is MS Dhoni the best captain in the world right now.

[Dr sim]

---

---

IPL+WC+number 1 ranking in test+number 2 In odi(number 1 for a brief time)

Mahendra Singh Dhoni: Captain extraordinaire

Suprateek Chaterjee

His surname has delighted advertising copy-writers and headline writers over his six-year career. From the immensely popular 'Dho Dala' campaign to the headline given to this article, Indian cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni's surname lends itself to a wide variety of puns, thus making it easier to wax eloquent about his exploits as, arguably, one of the greatest captains India has ever had.

As Dhoni turns 29 today, it's almost alarming to see how quickly time has flown by. In 2005, just five years ago, Dhoni was called in to replace a lacklustre Parthiv Patel, thanks to Rahul Dravid's reluctance to don the gloves during the tour of Bangladesh. While Dhoni failed to impress in that series, he fired big time in a following match at Vishakhapatnam - against arch-rivals Pakistan, no less - with a blitzkrieg 148 off 123 deliveries. Dhoni's innings erased the earlier record for the highest score by an Indian wicketkeeper, a record that would be rewritten by him before the end of that year.

That, by the way, was only his fifth one day international match.

In a relatively short career, Dhoni's exploits have become the stuff of legend. From premature-but-inevitable comparisons with Adam Gilchrist to leading the Indian team to glory in the form of the T20 World Cup and the number one ranking amongst Test teams, Dhoni has emerged as the perfect antidote to a team that was struggling with over-dependence on senior players. At the time he came in, the Indian team was under the Greg Chappell regime, still smarting from the departure of Sourav Ganguly, the injuries to Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag's inconsistent form. However, thanks to his flamboyant style of batting, willingness to adapt, and a down-to-earth attitude, Dhoni achieved iconic status within no time.

It helped that he was good-looking, of course. The Dhoni phenomenon only escalated as he continued to win matches for India, and endorsed all kinds of brands. While women drooled over his toothy grin and his straightened, stylishly long hair (which he later chopped off to resemble his favourite actor, John Abraham), the men grew their hair long and envied Dhoni's collection of cars and super-bikes (one Hummer, four cars and 23 bikes, at last count).

Dhoni has come a long way from his hometown in Ranchi, both literally and figuratively. The son of Pan Singh, an employee of MECON Ltd, Dhoni excelled in sports such as badminton and football in school before turning his attention to cricket. Interestingly, Dhoni might never have become a cricketer had he not been a talented football goalkeeper. The NIS football coach at DAV School in Ranchi, Kesava Ranjan Banerjee, was impressed with Dhoni's goal-keeping skills and he wanted him to play a sport which would provide him a wider exposure and better prospects.

The limited circumstances under which Dhoni learned cricket has provided him with the grit, strength and determination to overcome all odds. In his early years, Dhoni played cricket with canvas balls as cricket balls and even tennis balls were beyond his reach, and friends and family fondly recalled how his long sixes would destroy glass windows. In a career that is only one-fourth as long as Sachin Tendulkar's, Dhoni enjoys a level of fame and adulation that is astounding. His captaincy has been lauded by fans and critics alike, and an astounding number of his decisions, be it backing a certain player or end-game tactics, turn out to be spot-on.

Of late, Dhoni has been in the news for all the wrong reasons, from India's humiliating exit from the T-20 World Cup earlier to being replaced as captain by Suresh Raina for the Zimbabwe tour. His recent marriage to 21-year-old Sakshi Rawat, a Kolkata-based hotel management student, has dominated headlines of late. However, 'Captain Cool' Dhoni, rejuvenated from the recent Asia Cup win that he led the team to, is sure to reach that high again.

Highlights of Dhoni's career:

- On 31 October 2005, Dhoni scored 183* runs of just 145 balls against Sri Lanka at Jaipur. The innings featured 10 Sixes, the most by an Indian in an Innings, and the second highest in ODI cricket.

- Dhoni also holds the records of the most dismissals in an innings by an Indian wicketkeeper in an ODI (with Adam Gilchrist) with 6 dismissals (5 catches and one stumping) against England.

- In Tests, Dhoni's maiden century against Pakistan in Faisalabad (148) is the fastest century scored by an Indian wicket keeper. Only three centuries by two players (Kamran Akmal and Adam Gilchrist - 2) were faster than Dhoni's 93-ball century.

- He also holds the record for most catches by an Indian player in an innings. He achieved this feat by taking six catches during the first innings of the third test against New Zealand in Wellington, thus equalling Syed Kirmani's record.

- Under Dhoni's captaincy, India reached their highest test score of 726-9 (decl) during Sri Lanka's tour of India in 2009. Their 2-0 victory in the series took them to the number 1 ranking in Test cricket for the first time in history.

- Under Dhoni's captaincy, India had never lost a test match until the first test versus South Africa in Nagpur in Feb 2010.
I think we can say that MS Dhoni is the best captain in the world right now.

[Evil Flare]

not the best in the world but may be for India ..

[realindian]

not the best in the world but may be for India ..

no i think he is best captain of the world in present time bcoz Australian captain ricky ponting is also not performing well. and forget abt other countries captain. so if u r talking abt current cricket captain, he is at 1st place.

[RobbieS]

For me - Ponting, Dhoni and Smith. In that order.

[Imran Khan]

haan bhi indian her cheez dunya main number 1 hai baki sab to mer chuky hai.what abut the last 5 international cups which india win? its captin of somewere else who take cup last month.if you remember.

[realindian]

haan bhi indian her cheez dunya main number 1 hai baki sab to mer chuky hai.what abut the last 5 international cups which india win? its captin of somewere else who take cup last month.if you remember.

what happens wrong with u...now u r not treat like innocent member as i knew u..i don't no why it's happening but we want old Imran..

[mikkix]

the best captain currently is andrew strauss,,,,b/c of T20
Best captain in a leading role,,,sangakarra,,,dhoni,, smith,,afridi..

[Imran Khan]

what happens wrong with u...now u r not treat like innocent member as i knew u..i don't no why it's happening but we want old Imran..

bhai jee am i wrong look at forum and even whole internet . whats the problim no-1 no-2 no-3 world is not only a number . is some one select ms-dhoni today no-1 captin of world? i don't think so.live a simple life be humen normal yaar . i just show my stress of these days whole things are here on forum a race is going on nothing new nothing well wishes nothing to understand each other.and if i like to join you in this race you guys remember me that i am innocentlet me join you

[Dr sim]

what happens wrong with u...now u r not treat like innocent member as i knew u..i don't no why it's happening but we want old Imran..

Guys plz back ur own opinion with some solid proofs and arguments.

Dhoni=IPL+Test Team-1+ODI Team-2+ number 1 ranked ODI batsman

P.S- I am referring to current form(past 12 months or so)

[Nav]

Guys Smith and Vettori rocks . But doni have some luck .

[Peregrine]

Hi
I hate to beak it to all indian fans but all Indian players are highly over rated especially Dhonni, being brand ambassadors and by appearing in those flashy advertisements don't make good players on field. i am not sure if he is still playing for Australia but Ricky Ponting is/was the best captain

[Dash]

i am not sure if he is still playing for Australia but Ricky Ponting is/was the best captain

You are not in touch with cricket. Your comment has been nullified by the Jury

[Zakii]

Ponting is still the best...........................

At the moment most of the country's got best captains available to them

Sangakara for SL
Dhoni for India
Smith for SA
Afridi for Pakistan
Colligwood just won a WC (strauss another captain and defeated Australia)
Gayle for windies
etc

[Peregrine]

You are not in touch with cricket. Your comment has been nullified by the Jury

Hi
Verdict by the Indian jury? LOL why am i not surprised

[Dr sim]

---

---

Hi
I hate to beak it to all indian fans but all Indian players are highly over rated especially Dhonni, being brand ambassadors and by appearing in those flashy advertisements don't make good players on field. i am not sure if he is still playing for Australia but Ricky Ponting is/was the best captain

Sorry to disappoint u but here are the statistics
Sachin Tendulkar-every single batting record to his name(except 400)
Virender sehwag- Wisden cricketer of the year 2009,2010
MS Dhoni- world's number 1 Odi batsman
Zaheer Khan,harbhajan Singh-top 10 bowlers ranking
TEAM INDIA- Number 1 in the world


So next time u post something plz do some research