Top 10 finishes by MS Dhoni in ODI cricket

#2 183* v Sri Lanka in Jaipur, India (31 October, 2005)

Dhoni introduced himself to the cricketing world, as a player of reckoning, with his 183* against Sri Lanka in an ODI at Jaipur in 2005. Back in the day where chasing a score of around 300 was still considered pretty rare, Dhoni’s dazzling innings of 183 off 145 balls, flooded with 15 boundaries and 10 sixes, ensured India made light work of the target of 299 as they chased it with almost 4 overs to spare.

The then 25-year-old, who was promoted to No.3, walked out to bat with the scoreboard reading 7/1 after the loss of Sachin Tendulkar’s wicket and teed off right from the outset. You might see a pinch-hitter getting a quick-fire 50 or so, but it is very difficult to carry on in that fashion for an extended period. That wasn’t the case with Dhoni, however, as he never seemed to relent at any stage of his innings. The fact that the next highest score in the innings was Virender Sehwag’s 39 gives you a fair idea of the single-handed manner in which Dhoni took India to a crushing 6-wicket victory with almost 4 overs to spare.