Skip to main content

THE CAPTAIN’S CALL

Amidst the thunderous applause that reverberated through the Wankhede on the night of 2nd, April, 2011, Mahendra Singh Dhoni emerged to hold aloft the object of a million prayers, the World Cup Trophy!

Having silenced every wagging tongue, with a Captains innings of 91*, the Indian skipper not only sealed his place amongst the greatest ever captains, but also won a billion hearts!

Over a 7 year period, the boy from Ranchi has come a long way from the swaggering long haired youngster to the new (bald!) but extremely self assured individual carrying the (thankless) mantle of the ‘Captain of the Indian Cricket Team’. The T20 World Cup victory, Victories galore with the CSK IPL team (both, the IPL as well as the CL-T20) and now the World Cup itself, and with numero uno annexed in both Tests and ODIs, Dhoni has taken Indian Cricket to the pinnacle of success!

… And so everyone wants a piece of Dhoni! (Just look at the no. of ads he features in right now: Reebok, Sonata, Pepsi, Aircel… and the list goes on!)

Dhoni has proven to be a great strategist, a Captain who thinks on his feet, be it gambling with Joginder Sharma in the last over of the T20 final against Pakistan or sticking his neck and picking Ashish Nehra in the semi final, Dhoni’s calls have shown to be refreshing and inspired at most times! Apart from Captaincy, Dhoni also continues as India’s premier keeper as well as a premier batsman.

For someone who believes that Dhoni’s always had a good degree of luck going for him, I admit that I’ve been made to swallow my words. After all, what’s luck without talent and hard work eh!?!

So, the inevitable question, ‘Is Dhoni the greatest ever Indian Captain?... Ahead of Kapil Dev and Saurav Ganguly?...’ That’s still a difficult comparison to make. As for Kapil, I’ve no opinion (as I haven’t seen him during his playing days), but in my book he ties with Ganguly for the top spot!

The reason is: Ganguly had to build the team; Dhoni consolidated and took it forward. Ultimately, whatever one may say, Mahendra Singh Dhoni has indeligibly etched his name in the history book!

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

To World Peace...

To all those whose world was shaken on the 11th of September,2001, a chapter finally comes to an end. I still remember, watching the events unfold... it was just past six/seven o' clock in the evening,and as an 11 year old, I barely understood what was happening. My parents, of course, watched CNN broadcast the attack on one of the towers, and everyone was awestruck. And yet, as we were watching, another aircraft, flew straight into the other twin tower... The world had never ever seen such a thing. Shock and awe it was indeed! And as the twin towers (an emblem of America's financial power), came crumbling down, so did the dreams of hundreds of thousands... in one way or another. For some it was the loss of a near/ dear one,for others it was the loss of a dream, but for all it would come to mark the end of a lot of freedom, peace!The start of a brand new era marred by claustrophobic security and surveillance, mis -trust, unrest, paranoia ... and of new age terrorism. I...
2 comments
Read more

Short Story

My entry for DH short story contest 2012 KISS AND TELL Chapter 1 “Nearly done, there you go!”, he commented, putting down the saw and admiring his handiwork. His tall frame was drenched in perspiration, but his eyes sparkled with the satisfaction of having completed his task. Though a shade over sixty five, the former lawyer, thought his wife, looked… well resplendent. Despite the generous sprinkling of silver hair, the lines of wisdom which creased his temples, he still radiated the same powerful ‘something’ which drew her to him all those many years ago! A shy smile homed in on her face, as the memories of the glorious past streamed in. The first time she set her eyes on him, as a gawky eighteen year old in the bus, she thought him attractive, but it was only when they spoke, a long time later, that he truly won her heart. The courtship, the romance, she was well and truly swept off her feet. He was witty, intelligent, handsome, yet there was a mysterious something ab...
Post a Comment
Read more

ONE NIGHT AT THE DOCKS

This story was written back in 2010 as an entry for the Deccan Heral Short Story Competition. Back then I was a second year medical student, and was fascinated by diseases of the mind. Now having taken up Psychiatry as a specialization, I re read it, and I must say it's quite an accurate description( save for fictional liberty).  .................................................................................................................................................................. ‘Raman, how much exactly is eight times thirteen?’, I queried.  It was the fag end of the day, my feet were aching and I didn’t exactly pride myself with regards to my mathematical abilities. All I wanted was to tally the change, finish the cursory submission work and head home. ‘One hundred and four’, rapt came the reply. This boy had a sharp mind. Pity he didn’t put it to much use but to place bets at the bar that he’ll shortly be heading over to; to intoxicate himself to the p...
1 comment
Read more