A run down memory lane for Captain Cool's birthday

23rd December 2004. A 23 year old from Ranchi made his way into the Indian Cricket Team. Nobody had ever heard of him.

16 years later. If his name doesn't feature in the Indian squad, fans riot. So who is he and what exactly happened in between these 16 years?

5th April 2005, Vishakapatnam. Sachin and Sehwag were back in the pavilion by the 14th over. We CANNOT lose face to Pakistan. Coming in at number 3, Mahendra Singh Dhoni played the first of many, many more flamboyant and swashbuckling innings to come and took India across the line.

2007. India barely make a dent during the 50 over World Cup. The Indian team don't have much experience playing 20 over cricket either. Nobody is ready to take charge of the situation. The mantle is forced upon a long-haired 26 year old. On 24th September, he led his team to victory in the finale of the first ever T20 World Cup.

He repeated a similar feat on 2nd April 2011, defeating Sri Lanka to win the World Cup after 28 years and gave us all that iconic match-winning six. Again on 23rd June 2013, he led India to victory in the ICC Champions Trophy in England and against England to become the first captain in the history of cricket to win all ICC trophies. The list of victories does not end there......

Captain Cool, as he is known and loved, won 2 Asia Cups for his country. He has always been the most dependable when it comes to the middle order. He is, undoubtedly, the best finisher ever in white ball cricket. No ODI or T20 team is ever complete without featuring MSD. Do I even have words to describe his wicket keeping? No, I don't, because my words wouldn't do justice to his sorcery. His instincts and innovation when it comes to field setting and calling the shots on the field is unparalleled. I mean, there has to be some reason why fans affectionately call the DRS as the 'Dhoni Review System'. The cricketing brain he possesses is like no other. There have been countless instances where bowlers have taken wickets after listening to a useful tip from behind the stumps. No other captain debuted with legends, pulled his team through all the rough patches and left behind a team that dares to take on the world. I personally don't think India will have another MS Dhoni even if they do have another Sachin Tendulkar or Rahul Dravid or Virat Kohli.

Last but not the least, how is any write up about Dhoni's fantabulous feats complete without talking about CSK? 8 finals, 6 fair play awards and 3 trophies speaks volumes about his talents as a captain. His batting records in IPL speak no less as he averages 42.2 across 190 games, scoring over 4000 runs. Namma Thala Dhoni will forever be in our hearts as a Champion of Champions.

"Till the full stop does not come, the sentence is not complete." - M. S. Dhoni

Wishing Mahi a very happy 39th!! . . . . . . . (I might not be his biggest fan but I do recognise that the Indian cricketing scene would have been very different if not for him. Also it wouldn't hurt for him to comeback and play so that we can give him a proper send off now, would it?)