Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the former Indian captain turned 41 on Thursday. His stature parallels the greatest cricket players in the history of the game. There is hardly any cricket fan who does not know his name or the story around him. Despite taking retirement from the game, he still commands a strong presence in the hearts and minds of cricket fans all around the world.
Coming from a small town, the rise of MS Dhoni is a great story in itself. Despite some stutters, in the beginning, MS Dhoni soon became a force to be reckoned with. His meteoric rise to the top turned even Pakistan’s then Prime Minister, Parvez Musharraf his fan.
Fondly called as Mahi and ‘Thala’ by his fans, the legendary cricketer has won every possible trophy in his lifetime. The World Cup, T20I World Cup, Champions Trophy, four IPL trophies and a hoard of much more pay homage to the enigma of MS Dhoni.
Despite having retired years ago, the Chennai captain still holds many records that continue to remain unbroken. Let’s look at 10 of MS Dhoni’s records that are still under his name.
1. 100 ODI wins as captain
MS Dhoni is the only Indian captain to win more than 100 ODI matches for the country.
2. Most number of catches
The 41-year-old still holds the record for the most number of catches (256) by an Indian wicket keeper in Test matches.
3. Highest dismissals in single ODI
MS Dhoni has made six dismissals which included one stumping and five catches. This is the highest for an Indian cricketer ever.
4. Most stumpings in cricket
Dhoni still holds the record for most stumpings in cricket. In 538 matches, the ex-Indian captain stumped 195 times. The second highest is 139 from Kumar Sangakkara.
5. Most number of runs as wicketkeeper captain
With 3454 runs in Test cricket as captain, Dhoni leads everyone before and after him as the highest scorer in Test as a wicket-keeper batter for India.
6. Only captain to win all major cricket trophies
MS Dhoni has won the Champions Trophy, T20I World Cup and the ODI World Cup and is the only captain to have won all three.
7. Highest individual score by a wicketkeeper
With 183* against Sri Lanka, Dhoni holds the record for the highest individual score by any wicketkeeper in an ODI match.
8. Most stumpings in ODI
Dhoni is the only wicketkeeper in ODI to go past 100 stumpings (123) in ODI. His closest is Sangakkara with 99 stumpings.
9. Win most games as Indian captain
MS Dhoni is the only Indian captain to win more than 100 ODI games for the country. He has won 110 ODI matches as captain. His closest is Mohammad Azharuddin with 90 wins.
10. Most matches as captain
Mahi has surpassed the likes of Ricky Ponting, Allan Border, Sourav Ganguly and Stephen Fleming to lead his country in the most number of games. At 332, MS Dhoni has led in the most number of matches in the history of the game.
