This Time for Dhoni
When India won the 2007 T20 World Cup, MS Dhoni was trying to give birth to his rein and exorcise the ghosts of the 50 over World Cup loss to Bangladesh earlier that year. In 2011, Dhoni remained in the shadows. That win on the April 2 in Mumbai was for a God - Sachin Tendulkar. But 2015 is Dhoni's own baby. It's his team, handpicked by the man himself. It's his style of play. It's set to be the culmination of his legacy. This one, Dhoni knows will be remembered for him, if he pulls it off.
I could start this piece by telling you how it all started for MS Dhoni but I'd rather just skip to the end. This piece of learning comes from Dean Jones. The man regarded as one of the best One Day Cricketers of his generation, Deano, told me once, 'you're not remembered for how you start, you're remembered for how you finish'. MS Dhoni knows this. The 2015 Cricket World Cup could be all about finishing on a high. It's about leaving the nation high on MSD. (Full World Cup Coverage | Fixtures)
Nobody knows whether Dhoni will play the next World Cup or not but even he knows this is his best chance to win a World Cup which is not for Sachin. Just do me a favour. Open another tab on your computer/mobile/tablet right now and type in 'India win 2011 World Cup images'. Done? Now have a close look at the images that come up. Next try to find an image of Dhoni holding the Cup? It's tough. There are hardly any such images. It was only the next day, thanks to an official photography session, that Dhoni was seen posing with the Cup at the Gateway of India. On the day India won the World Cup, the moment Dhoni was handed the trophy, he passed it over to his teammates and in particular let them make it all about Sachin. They raised 'pahji' on their shoulders, while Dhoni just walked along without any extravagant celebrations. He simply remained in the shadows. It showed how generous and big hearted Dhoni really is.
What made the previous edition different wasn't just that it was for Sachin. It was also that the motivation to win it for Sachin brought together a team of individuals. Consider the big names for a second - Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Zaheer Khan, Yuvraj Singh, Harbhajan Singh. These stars have egos. They are not easy to manage. Dhoni did it. Sachin caused it.
However, this World Cup, Dhoni is causing it. A team of lesser knowns believes it can succeed if they follow the astute, cool, invigorating mind of Dhoni. The individuals in this team owe a lot to Dhoni. Barring Virat Kohli and maybe Rohit Sharma, most are products of Dhoni's encouragement and belief in them. Suresh Raina, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohit Sharma, R Ashwin, Mohammad Shami, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ajinkya Rahane, Shikhar Dhawan have all blossomed under the man with the midas touch. His instructions are gospel truth for them.
Before India's game against Zimbabwe, Mohammad Shami said 'I am lucky that all my debuts -- Tests, One-dayers, Twenty20s all have come under Dhoni and the way he handles things looks good to me. He keeps me tension-free and never says anything about mistakes. He never gets angry and gives me peace. He talks in a smooth manner and it is good for a bowler that the captain backs him and that's the biggest plus for me. In 2011 it was the last World Cup for Sachin Tendulkar. This time, you don't know who is playing their last World Cup so we are focused on winning''.
In the previous World Cup, when it was time to make a tough decision, you would see Dhoni in a conference with Sachin, Sehwag and Zaheer at times. But in this World Cup rarely have you seen Dhoni lending an ear to anybody else. The only man who has got that close to Dhoni has been India's Test Captain Virat Kohli. Talking about Test cricket, Dhoni has already called it a day in the whites of the game. Could it be that a win here in Australia could see us witness another abrupt retirement?
If India does go on to win this World Cup, keep an eye on Dhoni. Will he maintain his style of staying away from the limelight? Or will he make himself available for a little elaboration of the Mohammad Ali saying 'it ain't bragging, if you can back it up'?
Incidentally, the last time a World Cup was held in Australia, the winning Captain, tried to steal the limelight. At the presentation ceremony Pakistan Captain, Imran Khan made it all about himself in an infamous speech saying 'By winning this World Cup, personally, it means that one of my greatest obsessions in life, which is to build a cancer hospital, I'm sure this World Cup will go a long way to help the completion of this obsession. I would also like to say that I feel very proud that at the twilight of my career finally I have managed to win the World Cup'.
Surely Dhoni will learn from history but that doesn't necessarily mean he won't seize the opportunity in a subtle manner. After close to 8 years of Captaincy in the shadows, maybe it is time to let Captain Cool bask in the sun?
And it is most likely this time around too. Way back when Dhoni started his Captaincy career he said, "I want eleven players ready to stand in front of a truck if I ask them to." Today he has them. Wonder what he can achieve with that?