5 forgotten victories of India under MS Dhoni's captaincy

Mahendra Singh Dhoni is a name that will be etched in the history of Indian cricket forever. Apart from being the only captain to lift all three ICC titles (World T20, World Cup and Champions Trophy), the wicket-keeper batsman also led India to the number one position in ICC's Test ranking.

Dhoni captained the Indian team for almost 10 years and emerged victorious 178 times (27 Test wins, 110 ODI wins and 41 T20I wins) from a total of 331 games (most by any captain). There are a lot of famous wins that people remember - such as those three ICC titles, 2014 Test win at Lord's, 2010 Asia Cup victory and many more.

With so many wins under his belt, there are several successful matches that people do not remember in a similar manner. Here are five such forgotten wins achieved by India under Dhoni's captaincy.

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#5 2nd T20I vs Sri Lanka (Mohali) – 2009

Birthday boy Yuvraj Singh's powerful knock helped India level the series 1-1

By December 2009, T20 cricket had grabbed the world’s attention. Two editions of the World T20 and Indian Premier League had gone through successfully among various other T20 competitions.

After becoming powerhouses of T20 cricket with the advent of the IPL, India went through a rough patch in the shortest format. Before the second T20 against Sri Lanka at Mohali, they had lost six out of nine T20 games in that year (including a losing streak of four matches).

Leading 1-0, Sri Lanka opted to bat on a flat pitch. They posted a mammoth 206. This was the second consecutive time in the series that the Lankans had managed to score above 200.

India were very sloppy in the field. They dropped as many as six catches in the second T20 alone. Adding to these drop catches were several mistakes on the field as the hosts conceded 24 extras (17 wides and 7 leg-byes). Thus, it resulted in the visitors setting a target of over 200 for the second successive time.

Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir set the tone early as India got off to a brilliant start. They were 58/1 at the end of the Power Play (after losing Gambhir on the last ball of the 6th over). Skipper Dhoni promoted himself to number three to up the ante.

Sehwag looked in great touch as he scored a 36-ball 64. He shared a 50-run partnership with Dhoni before holing out in the 11th over. Following the opener's dismissal, birthday boy Yuvraj Singh entered the arena. He started hitting the ball cleanly. His splendid 25-ball 60 (which included 3 fours and 5 sixes) helped India register the then highest successful run-chase in T20Is and level the series 1-1.

Brief Scores: India 211 for 4 (Sehwag 64, Yuvraj 60*, Dhoni 46, Malinga 1/28) beat Sri Lanka 206 for 7 (Sangakkara 59, Jayasinghe 38, Yuvraj 3-23)

#4 1st Test vs New Zealand (Hamilton) – 2009

Tendulkar scored his 42nd Test hundred which provided the platform for India's 520

After losing the T20I series 0-2, India started to turned things around in their 2009 tour of New Zealand when the action shifted to the 50-overs format. Under Dhoni's captaincy, they won their first ever bilateral ODI series on New Zealand soil.

When the Test series, their confidence was high. It had been 33 years since India won a Test match in New Zealand and they arrived at Hamilton with the aim of putting an end to that drought. It was also Dhoni’s first Test as captain outside India.

On a grassy track, India opted to bowl first. With conditions aiding swing bowling, the new ball bowlers justified Dhoni’s decision to field first. Zaheer Khan and Ishant Sharma tore apart the top order to reduce the hosts to 60/6. But brilliant tons from Jessie Ryder and Daniel Vettori ensured the Kiwis reached a respectable 279.

India, in reply, were solid. On the back of Sachin Tendulkar’s superb 160 (his 42nd Test ton) as well as contributions from Gambhir (72) and Dravid (66), they replied with a mammoth 520.

Trailing by 241 in their second innings, New Zealand were off to a bad start as they lost McIntosh on the 3rd ball of the innings. There was some stability after the first wicket fell. But as soon as Guptill got out, wickets fell at regular intervals. Late resistance from Brendon McCullum delayed the inevitable as the Blackcaps were bundled out for 279. India chased the target of 39 without any fuss to go 1-0 up in the series. The visitors would hold on to the lead and accomplish a memorable Test series win in New Zealand.

Brief Scores: New Zealand 279 (Vettori 118, Ryder 102, Ishant 4-73, Munaf Patel 3/60) and 279 (McCullum 84, Flynn 67, Harbhajan 6-63) lost to India 520 (Tendulkar 160, Gambhir 72, Dravid 66, Zaheer 51*, Martin 3/98) and 39 for 0 (Gambhir 30*)

#3 2nd Test vs Australia (Bangalore) – 2010

India retained the Border-Gavaskar Trophy after a 2-0 series win

The teams moved to Bangalore for the second and final Test after a nail-biting game in Mohali wherein India had sneaked a thrilling 1-wicket win. With the series on the line, Australia opted to bat first.

The Australian batsmen made full of perfect batting conditions at the Chinnaswamy Stadium. Marcus North scored a memorable ton (128) and Watson (57), Ponting (77) and Paine (59) notched up fifties as Australia posted 478.

In reply, India were in a spot of bother at 38/2 when Sachin Tendulkar joined the then inexperienced Murali Vijay at the crease. The duo absorbed the pressure and forged a fantastic 308-run partnership. Vijay scored his maiden Test ton while Tendulkar scored a memorable double ton (214). India eked out a slender lead of 17 as they finished with 495.

When India finished their innings mid-way through the fourth day, the game looked set for a draw. But a feisty bowling performance helped the hosts skittle out Australia for 223 on the final day with all the bowlers sharing the spoils.

The target was 207 and India had 77 overs to get them. It was tricky considering they were batting fourth. But a composed Pujara (on debut) scored a stroke-filled 72 after being promoted to number three. His 72 and Sachin’s unbeaten 53 helped India chase down 207 with ease as they wrapped up the series 2-0 to retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

Brief Scores: Australia 478 (North 128, Ponting 77, Ojha 3/120, Harbhajan 4/148) and 223 (Ponting 72, Zaheer 3-41, Ojha 3-57) lost to India 495 (Tendulkar 214, Vijay 139, Johnson 3/105) and 207 for 3 (Pujara 72, Tendulkar 53*)

#2 2nd ODI vs South Africa (Johannesburg) – 2011

Yuvraj Singh took a couple of brilliant catches in crunch moments as India defended 190.

After an intriguing Test series which ended 1-1, India won the only T20I before South Africa pulled one back with a comprehensive win in the first ODI.

India’s batsmen didn’t deliver the goods in the second ODI as they were bundled out for 190. India were going well at one stage – 150/3. But the fall of Yuvraj triggered a collapse as India lost their last seven wickets for 40 runs. Each batsman in the top five got starts but none of them converted it into a big one.

The Proteas were on course to make it 2-0 as Smith and Miller were going well with the former having registered a well-compiled half-century. At 150/4, the game seemed to be almost dead and buried but Smith’s wicket injected life back into the game as India started to tighten the screws.

The ‘Men in Blue’ kept chipping away with wickets at regular intervals as the hosts slipped to 177/8. A couple of boundaries (one from Parnell and one from Morkel) tilted the game in South Africa's favour but there was another twist as Morkel fell with 3 runs needed. Tsotsobe stole a single to bring Parnell on strike. However, he fell as Yuvraj took a crucial catch at backward point to seal the game for India.

Brief Scores: India 190 (Yuvraj 53, Dhoni 38, Tsotsobe 4-22, Morkel 2/32) beat South Africa 189 (Smith 77, Munaf 4-29, Zaheer 2/37)

#1 3rd ODI vs Pakistan (Delhi) – 2013

Dhoni was the only batsman from his team to offer any type of resistance to Pakistan's bowling attack

India and Pakistan played a bilateral series after 5 years when the latter toured India for a short limited-overs series (2 T20Is and 3 ODIs) in December-January (2012-13). After the T20 series ended 1-1, Pakistan took the one-day honours by winning the first two games.

India’s batsmen were found wanting against a quality bowling attack. Barring skipper MS Dhoni, none of the Indian batsmen crossed the 50-run mark. On a cold Delhi afternoon, India opted to bat first as they looked to avoid a humiliating whitewash.

A script similar to the first two ODIs seemed to transpire as the Indian batsmen failed to stand-up and deliver leaving the skipper to do the bulk of the scoring. He once again top-scored with 36 as India were all-out for 167.

Defending a mere 167 on a seam-friendly surface, the hosts got off to a very good start as Bhuvneshwar Kumar swung the ball viciously to reduce Pakistan to 14/2 in the 7th over. But Nasir Jamshed and Misbah-ul-Haq steadied the ship for Pakistan. India's spin duo of Ashwin and Jadeja evened the scales by weaving their magic. They scalped 3 wickets between them at crucial junctures.

The home team's pacers came back to dent Pakistan further who were reduced to 145/9. But with Hafeez still in the middle, the visitors still had hope. He hit Ishant Sharma for a couple of boundaries to put pressure back on India. But, eventually, Ishant got his man as India completed a consolation victory to avoid a whitewash on home soil.

Brief Scores: India 167 (Dhoni 36, Ajmal 5-24, Mohammed Irfan 2/28) beat Pakistan 157 (Jamshed 34, Misbah 39, Ishant 3-36, Bhuvneshwar 2/31)