Mumbai: Apart from Sachin Tendulkar, former skippers Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly also played key roles in Mahendra Singh Dhoni's appointment as the Indian captain for the inaugural World Twenty20 Cup in 2007, former chief selector Dilip Vengsarkar revealed on Monday.

"I was in England then (as the then selection panel chief watching the Indian team in action) and interacted with Sachin, Rahul and Sourav who felt Dhoni had the right attitude to become the India captain," Vengsarkar said.

"We (selectors) too felt so, though there was initial apprehension about how he would assume full charge", he said.

The senior trio had pulled out of the Twenty20 World Cup to pave the way for Dhoni to become the captain and create history by leading the squad to a spectacular triumph by beating arch-rivals Pakistan in a pulsating final in South Africa.

Vengsarkar said he knew that the team would win the 2007 title after the league opener against Pakistan which ended in a tie and had to be resolved through a bowl-out won by Dhoni and his men.

"We had beaten Pakistan in our first match in 1985 in the Benson and Hedges (World Championship in Australia) and went on to win the championship", Vengsarkar recalled, explaining reasons for his optimism two years ago about the Dhoni-led side.