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Before MS Dhoni was named the captain of Indian cricket team back in 2007, Indian cricket was not in a good state. The Indian team were knocked out of the 2007 World Cup in the first stage and they lost many series as well.
Then came the inaugural T-20 World Cup and three star experienced players - Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, and Rahul Dravid - withdrew from taking part in this competition.
The team was left with a unit of young lads and the team's management took an unorthodox decision and appointed MS Dhoni as the captain of the team. To their surprise the Indian team emerged victorious and MS Dhoni went on to become the most successful captain for Team India.
During his tenure he took some brave and unusual calls which ultimately benefited the team. Whether it was an on field call regarding the bowling option or the off field call of including any player in the team, they all helped India to give some fruitful results.
He also saved the careers of many cricketers in whom he had immense faith in, as some of them even went on to become greats of the game. Here are a few of them:
#5 Ishant Sharma
Ishant Sharma had a dream start to his career. The tour to Australia in 2008 announced his arrival to international cricket with a bang. That dream spell to Ricky Ponting in the Perth test and that whole Commonwealth Bank series adjudged him as the front line bowler which India needed.
But as years rolled by, Sharma soon lost his rhythm. His economy rate was deeply hurt and wickets had also dried up. Selectors even dropped him a few times but MS Dhoni insisted on having him in his team.
After he got some stability, he is now a permanent member in the Test squad of the team. In 184 international matches, he has 253 wickets under his belt.
#4 Cheteshwar Pujara
Cheteshwar Pujara, after a stupendous domestic season in 2010, was given a maiden call in the national squad. He did attract the selectors with few good innings but could not fulfill the expectations of the management.
That is when MS Dhoni backed Pujara and saved him from getting dropped. MS Dhoni saw that solidity in Pujara which he saw in Rahul Dravid and thus wanted him in his team. To be fair enough, MS Dhoni regarded him as a pure Test match player and never considered him for the limited overs squad.
Today Pujara is the most reliable test match player for Team India, and in 68 test matches, he has amassed 5,426 runs.
#3 Ravindra Jadeja
Ravindra Jadeja did not have an illustrious start to his career. After the 2010 T-20 World Cup, where Jadeja and some other Indian players were involved in an incident at a St. Lucia pub shortly after the team was knocked out of the competition, he didn't know what lay ahead of him.
It was just then that MS Dhoni backed him and revived his career. Under Dhoni's captaincy Jadeja flowered and went on to become the number one Test bowler and an all rounder as well.
#2 Rohit Sharma
When Rohit Sharma debuted for his country, the cricket fans felt that he is an extremely talented cricketer and would went on to become an all time great for Team India. But unfortunately Sharma did not begin his career as everyone expected. He was many opportunities and each time he failed miserably. He hardly got big scores and runs from his bat.
During India's tour to Sri Lanka in 2012, he scored a mere 13 runs out of the five matches he played. MS Dhoni was even widely criticized over the selection of Rohit Sharma. But he never stopped believing in him.
During the Champions Trophy in 2013, Dhoni promoted Rohit Sharma up the order and asked him to open. Since then he never looked back. From that point Rohit Sharma amassed thousands of runs and even got hundreds frequently.
He is the first cricketer on this planet to score three double centuries in limited overs, where no one has even two. He even has the most centuries in the shortest format of game and highest individual score in 50 overs game. Today he is the most dangerous and explosive opener in the world and on his way to be an all time great in the game.
#1 Virat Kohli
The captain of Indian's cricket team has often said in his press conferences that the former skipper has always backed him and even saved him from getting dropped from the side.
MS Dhoni had recognized the talent within Virat Kohliand always supported him. Initially, Virat was not able to get big scores and few eyebrows were raised over his constant selection.
It was MS who gave Virat the assurance and belief that he is going to get games to play and show his worth. As soon as Virat once got flight he never got down. From there, each time he got on to the field he always broke some record or the other.
He has got innumerable achievements under his name and today he is the number one batsman in the world across all formats and an all time great for the country.
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