Sourav Ganguly

Sourav Chandidas Ganguly,born 8 July 1972 is a former Indian test cricketer, and captain of the Indian national team. As of October 2008, he was India's most successful Test captain to date, winning 21 tests out of 49 tests he captained and leading India into the 2003 World Cup finals.An aggressive captain, Ganguly is credited with having nurtured the careers of many young players who played under him.

The left-handed Ganguly was a prolific One Day International batsman, with over 11,000 ODI runs to his credit.Despite ODI success, his Test place was often lost to younger players towards the later stages of his career. On October 7 2008, Ganguly announced that the Test series against Australia starting that month would be his last.Ganguly played his last first-class match on 21 December 2008.

Early life



The youngest son of Chandidas and Nirupa Ganguly, Ganguly was born on 8 July 1972 in Kolkata.His father ran a flourishing print business and was one of the richest men in Kolkata.He had a luxurious childhood and was nicknamed the Maharaja.Though he was asked to concentrate on his studies and not to play cricket, he was inspired to do so by his brother Snehasish Ganguly,an accomplished left-handed batsman for Bengal.Though he was actually right-handed, he batted left-handed so that he could use his brother's equipment.After he showed some promise as a batsman, he was enrolled in a cricket academy.An indoor multi-gym and concrete wicket was built at home for him and his brother, and he would often watch cricket videos, especially those of David Gower, whom he admired.After he scored a century against the Orissa U-15 side,he was made captain of St Xavier's School's cricket team,where several of his teammates complained against what they perceived to be his arrogance.One anecdote was that during a tour with a junior team, it was Ganguly's turn to be the twelth man, a substitute who can only field and whose role is usually to raise morale by supporting the playing XI by organising their spare equipment and drinks, and ferrying messages from the dressing room to the players. Ganguly purportedly refused to do such tasks as he considered it beneath his social status to assist his teammates in such a way.

Debut and early career



Following a prolific Ranji season in 1990-91,Ganguly made his One Day International debut for India against West Indies in 1992,and scored three runs.He was dropped immediately since he was perceived to be "arrogant" and his attitude towards the game was openly questioned.He toiled away in domestic cricket, scoring heavily in the 1993-94 and 1994-95 seasons.Following an innings of 171 in the 1995-96 Duleep Trophy,he was recalled to the national side for the tour of England in 1996 amidst intense media scrutiny.He played in one ODI,but was omitted from the team for the first Test. However, after Navjot Sidhu left the touring party citing ill-treatment by the then captain Mohammed Azharuddin,made his Test debut at Lord's alongside Rahul Dravid, in what was umpire Dickie Bird's last Test.He scored a century, becoming only the third cricketer to score a century on debut at Lord's, after Harry Graham and John Hampshire. Andrew Strauss and Matt Prior have since accomplished this feat, but his 131 still remains the highest by any batsman on his debut at Lord's.In the next Test match at Trent Bridge he made 136, thus becoming only the 3rd batsman to make a century in each of his first two innings (after Lawrence Rowe and Alvin Kallicharran). He shared a 255 run stand with Sachin Tendulkar, which became at that time the highest partnership for India against any country for any wicket outside India.

Opening in ODIs



In 1997 Ganguly scored his maiden ODI century, opening the innings he scored 113, in his side's 238, against Sri Lanka. Later that year he won four consecutive man of the match awards in the Sahara Cup with Pakistan, the second of these was won after he took 5/16 off 10 overs, his best bowling in an ODI. After a barren run in Test cricket his form returned at the end of the year with three centuries in four Tests all against Sri Lanka two of these involved stands with Sachin Tendulkar of over 250.

In January 1998, in the final of the Independence Cup at Dhaka, against Pakistan, he scored 124 as India successfully chased down 315 off 48 overs, winning the Man of the match award. In March 1998 he was part of the India team that defeated Australia, his biggest impact came in Calcutta as he took three wickets having opened the bowling with his medium pace.

In the 1999 World Cup Ganguly scored 183 against Sri Lanka at Taunton, Somerset in England. The innings took 158 balls and included 17 fours and 7 sixes. It is the second highest in World Cup history and the highest by an Indian in the tournament. His partnership of 318 with Rahul Dravid is the highest ever in the World Cup and is the second highest in all ODI cricket.

In 1999/00 India lost Test series to both Australia and South Africa in the five Tests. Ganguly struggled scoring 224 runs at 22.40, however his ODI form was impressive, with five centuries over the season taking him to the top of the One Day Ratings for batsmen.

Ascension to captaincy



In 2000, after the match fixing scandal, Ganguly was named the captain of the India team. In the Champions Trophy of that year he scored 2 centuries but his second in the final was in vain as New Zealand won by four wickets. In 2003 under his captaincy India reached the World Cup Final, where they lost to the Australians.

While he has achieved significant success as captain, his individual performance deteriorated during his captaincy, especially after successes in the World Cup, the tour of Australia in 2003 and the Pakistan series in 2004. Following indifferent form in 2004 and poor form in 2005, he was dropped from the team in October 2005. He remained active on the first-class cricket scene in hopes of a recall, but his performance was a mixed bag - he hit a couple of centuries in domestic cricket, but his English county stint in 2005 and subsequent appearances in the Challenger Trophy were failures.

Having been nominated and rejected in 2001 when the game suffered a tarnished reputation due to match fixing scadals,Ganguly was awarded the Padma Shri in 2004, one of India's highest awards.

In his tenure between 2000 and 2005, Ganguly became India's most successful Test captain. He led his team to victory on 21 occasions 7 more times than Mohammad Azharuddin with the second most wins and led them for a record 49 matches twice more than both Azharuddin and Sunil Gavaskar.Compared to his batting average of 45.47 when not captain,Ganguly's Test batting aerage as captain was a lower 37.66.The pressure of captaincy detracting from Ganguly's batting is also reflected in his ODI batting averages: 38.66 as captain compared to 43.16 when playing as a specialist batsman.In ODIs, he captained India 146 , emerging victorious on 76 occasions, second only to Azharuddin in both number of wins and number of matches as captain.

Comeback



Following India's poor batting display in the ICC Champions Trophy 2006 and the ODI series in South Africa, in which they were whitewashed 4-0,Ganguly made his comeback to the Test team.Wasim Jaffer, Zaheer Khan and Anil Kumble had earlier been selected for the one-day squad,in what was seen as an indictment of coach Greg Chappell's youth-first policy.Coming in at 37/4, he scored 83 in a tour match against the Rest of South Africa, modifying his original batting style and taking a middle-stump guard,an innings that set up a victory for India.In his first Test innings since his comeback, against South Africa in Johannesburg, he scored 51 in a low scoring game, an innings that helped India win a Test match in South Africa for the first time.Though India went on to lose the series, he topped the run scroing charts for his side.

After his successful Test comeback he was recalled for the ODI team, as India played host to West Indies and Sri Lanka in back to back ODI tournaments. In his first ODI innings in almost 2 years,he scored a matchwinning 98.He performed creditably in both series, averaging almost 70 and won the Man of the Series Award against Sri Lanka.

2007 World Cup and aftermath


Following his good performance, Ganguly was named in the squad for the 2007 Cricket World Cup. He was the leading scorer for India in their first round defeat against Bangladesh.After India were knocked out of the tournament in the group stage, there were reports of a rift between certain members of the Indian team and their coach Greg Chappell. Ganguly, allegedly, ignored instructions from the team management to score quickly.After Sachin Tendulkar issued a statement saying that what hurt the team most was that "the coach has questioned our attitude", Chappell decided not to renew his contract with the Indian team.

On 12 December 2007, Ganguly scored his maiden double century of his career while playing against Pakistan in the first innings of the third and final Test match of the series. He was involved in a 300 run partnership for the 5th wicket along with Yuvraj Singh - a much needed partnership that saved India which was struggling at 61 for the fall of four wickets. He later went on to score 239 before being dismissed by Danish Kaneria.

On 18 April 2008, Ganguly led the Kolkata Knight Riders team owned by Shah Rukh Khan in the IPL Twenty20 cricket match to a 140 run victory over Bangalore Royal Challengers led by Rahul Dravid and owned by Vijay Mallya. Ganguly opened the innings with Brendan McCullum and scored 10 runs while his partner Brendan McCullum remained unbeaten blasting his way to a record 158* runs in 73 balls. On 1 May in a game between the Knight Riders and the Rajasthan Royals, Ganguly made his highest score of the season and his second T20 half century, scoring 51 runs off of 39 balls at a strike rate of 130.76. In his innings, Ganguly hit four 4s and two sixes, topping the scorers list for the Knight Riders.

Ganguly has been prolific in both Test and ODI cricket in the year 2007. He scored 1106 Test runs at an average of 61.44 (with three centuries and four fifties) in 2007 to become the second highest run-scorer in Test matches of that year after Jacques Kallis. He is the fifth highest rungetter in 2007 in ODIs,where he scored 1240 runs at 44.28.

Retirement from International Cricket



On 7 October 2008, Ganguly announced that the Test series against Australia starting in October 2008 would be his last and stated "to be honest, I didn't expect to be picked for this series". Ganguly played in every game of the four-Test series, repaying the selectors faith in him by amassing 324 runs at an average of 54.00.In his last innings, he was dismissed for duck off just one ball. India won the series 2-0, and in the final match, with India needing one wicket to secure a victory, the India captain, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, allowed Ganguly to lead the side in the field one last time.

Playing Style



Sourav Ganguly was a left-handed batsman whose runs came primarily from the off-side. Throughout his career, he played off-side shots such as the square cut, square drive and cover drive with elegance and complete command. Early in his career he was not comfortable with the hook and pull, often giving his wicket away with mistiming such shots. He was also criticized for having difficulty in handling short pitched balls and bouncers, notoriously exploited by the Australians and South Africans. However, after his comeback in 2007, he worked upon these weaknesses to a large extent. He used to hit powerful shots to the off-side on front and back foot with equal ease.

In One Day Internationals, where he usually opened the innings, he used to try to take the advantage of fielding restrictions by advancing down the pitch and hitting pace bowlers over extra cover and mid-off. He was also notorious for attacking left arm spin bowlers. Due to excellent hand-eye coordination, he was noted for picking the length of the ball early, coming down the pitch and hitting the ball aerially over mid-on or midwicket, often for a six. However, he did have a weakness in running between the wickets and judging quick singles. There were many instances where Ganguly's batting partner was run out due to Ganguly's calling for a run, and then sending him back while halfway down the pitch. Ganguly was also an unagile player, and compounded this with a reputation for lazy running between the wickets. In one ODI against Australia, he took a single when on 99, but he coasted and did not ground his bat. Although it was past the crease, it was in the air and he was run out.

Ganguly was a right arm medium pace bowler. He could swing and seam the ball both ways and often chips in with useful wickets to break partnerships. Despite not being very athletic as a fielder, Ganguly has taken 100 catches in one-day Internationals. However, his ground fielding, especially his slowness in intercepting the ball to prevent runs is the subject of much derision.

Records



Ganguly is the seventh Indian cricketer to have played 100 Test matches.He is currently the 4th highest overall run scorer for India in Tests.He is the fourth Indian to have played in more than 300 One Day Internationals.In terms of overall runs scored in ODIs, Ganguly is the second among Indians after Sachin Tendulkar (who has the highest ODI runs in the world) and the fourth in the world.Ganguly has scored 16 centuries in Test matches and 22 in ODIs. He is one of only seven batsmen to score more than 10,000 runs in ODIs.Ganguly has 22 centuries in ODIs, in terms of number of centuries in ODIs, he is only behind Sachin Tendulkar, Sanath Jayasuriya and Ricky Ponting. Sourav, along with Sachin Tendulkar, formed by far the most successful opening pair in One Day Cricket, having amassed the highest number of century partnerships for the first wicket. Together, they have scored more than 7000 runs at an average of 48.98, now with Sachin he is a world record holder for creating most no. of 50 run partnership in the first wicket(44 fifties).

Ganguly is the fourth player to cross 11,000 ODI runs and third player to cross 10,000 ODI runs and so far the fastest in ODI history, after Sachin Tendulkar. He also reached 6000, 7000, 8000 and 9000 ODI runs milestones in the fewest number of matches. Sourav can bowl medium-pacers as well, taking 31 wickets in 99 matches, at an average of 52.47. As of 2006, he is the only Indian captain to win a Test series in Pakistan (although two of the three Tests of that series was led by Rahul Dravid). He is also one of the 3 players in the world to achieve amazing treble of 10,000 runs, 100 wickets and 100 catches in ODI cricket history, the others being Sachin Tendulkar and Sanath Jayasuriya.

Test

* Captained India in a record 49 Test matches
* Led India to a record 21 Test wins
* His Test average has never been less than 40.

ODIs

* Hold the record of most 200+ ODI partnerships (6 times) along with Sachin Tendulkar and Ricky Ponting.
* Holds the record, shared with Sachin Tendulkar, for most 1st wicket ODI partnerships of 175+ runs (7 times).
* Holds the record, shared with Mahendra Singh Dhoni, for the second highest score by an Indian cricketer in an ODI 183, against Sri Lanka in 1999.
* Held the record, shared with Sachin Tendulkar, for the highest first wicket partnership for India in an ODI match, 258, against Kenya in 2001. This record was bettered by Sri Lankan opening pair of Jayasuriya and Tharanga in 2006 at Headingley.
* Was involved in the first 300 run ODI partnership with Rahul Dravid.
* Sixth on the all time list with 31 man of the match awards.
* He is also the only player to win 4 consecutive man of the match awards in ODIs.
* India's most successful ODI captain.
* First Indian to score an ODI century against Australia in Australia.
* Highest ODI runs scorer in the world (in a calendar year) in 1997,1999,2000.
* Third in the list of hitting maximum number of sixes in ODIs.
* Second in the list of highest number of centuries in a single calendar year ever. 7 centuries in 2000.

Rahul Dravid

Rahul Dravid, born Jan. 11, 1973, is an Indian cricketer and a former captain of the Indian national cricket team. A regular member since 1986, Dravid is the third Indian batsman, after Sunil Gavaskar and Sachin Tendulkar, to have scored 10,000 runs in test cricket. On Feb. 14, 2007, he became the sixth player in history and the third Indian since Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly to score 10,000 runs in ODI cricket.

In September 2007, he resigned as captain of India team. He is the captain as well as the Icon Player in the Royal Challengers Bangalore team in the Indian Premier League.

Is Rahul Dravid not a top batsman?

According to ICC, "The Wall," as he's known, did not deserve to be placed above the 30th rank in the new “Best Ever” ratings issued by the board. Whereas Kumara Sangakara, Matthew Hayden, Mike Hussey, Kevin Pietersen and Neil Harvey could easily find a berth for themselves in the Top 29. "The Master Blaster" Sachin is also not in the Top 20. Even he got the rank of 26th, according to ICC's all-time best test batsman rankings.



Rahul Dravid Comeback in Test Team



After a barren run in test matches in 2008, Dravid came under increasing media pressure to retire or be dropped. In the second test against England in Mohali, he scored 136, putting on a triple-century stand with Gautam Gambhir. This ton helped his team draw the test and clinched the series 1-0 against England.



"The Wall's" Personal Life



Dravid was born in Indore, Madhya Pradesh into a Maharashtrian Deshastha family living in Karnataka. His paternal ancestors were Iyers from Thanjavur. He grew up in Bangalore, Karnataka. He speaks Marathi and Kannada. He has a younger brother, Vijay. Both the brothers grew up in a serious and simple middle-class atmosphere.

Dravid's father worked for Kissan Products Ltd., a company known for jams and preserves;thus he earned the nickname "Jammy" from his teammates at St. Joseph's, Bangalore. And his mother, Pushpa, was a professor of Architecture at Bangalore University.

Dravid has a degree in Commerce from St Joseph's College of Commerce Bangalore, Karnataka. On May 4, 2003, Dravid married Dr. Vijeta Pendharkar, a surgeon from Nagpur , and on Oct. 11, 2005, their son, Samit, was born.



"The Wall" in IPL



Rahul Dravid is the captain and icon player of the Bangalore Royal Challengers, owned by Vijay Mallya. But his team did not do well in the first season of the IPL tournament and came in last place. It's not yet known whether Dravid will lead the team or not this season.



Honours of Rahul Dravid - The wall



In 2004, Rahul was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of India.

On Sept. 7, 2004, Dravid was awarded the inaugural Player of the Year Award and the Test Player of the Year by the International Cricket Council, or ICC .

In the 2005 ICC Awards, Rahul Dravid was the only Indian to be named to the World One-Day XI.



Rahul's Personality



Rahul has been one of the main pillars of the Indian, batting with his blend of technical proficiency and stylish strokes. His strokes are so technically-sound, that he is called "the wall" of the Indian team. His batting style was regarded as slow for the ODI’s initially, but with his imaginative placing of the ball and innovative strokes, he made himself an integral part of the Indian team for both tests as well as ODI’s.

His temperament for both versions of the game is exemplary and has earned him respect from all the other players. He was verily the batsman of the 1999 World Cup with two hundreds and the highest aggregate. For this, he was named as Wisden Cricketer of the Year—one of the few Indians to receive this special accolade. His good, innocent looks make him very popular among the girls.

For sheer consistency, Dravid has few equals and has maintained a Test career average of over 50. His temperament is exemplary, his concentration legendary. A batsman who revels in a crisis, Dravid, against New Zealand in January 1999, joined the ranks of Vijay Hazare and Sunil Gavaskar as one of only three Indians to have scored a century in each innings in a test.

The poor run in Australia in 1999-2000 was only a passing phase, and he returned to top form the next season, including notching up his first double century in tests. Named as "The Wall" for obvious reasons, the modest, unassuming, and well-behaved Dravid is one of the most popular and instantly recognizable players in the cricket world.



Early years of cricket



Dravid started playing cricket at the age of 12, and represented the state at the under-15, under-17, and under-19 level. Dravid's talents were first spotted by former cricketer Keki Tarapore, who was coaching at a summer coaching camp at the Chinnaswamy Stadium. He went on to score a century in the debut for his school team. Along with the batting, he was keeping wickets. However, he later stopped keeping wickets on advice from former test players Gundappa Vishwanath, Roger Binny, Brijesh Patel and Tarapore.

Rahul was selected to make his Ranji Trophy debut in February 1991 against Maharashtra in Pune (while still attending college at St. Joseph's College of Commerce in Bangalore), alongside future Indian teammates Anil Kumble and Javagal Srinath, scoring 82 in a draw after batting in the No. 7 position.

His first full season was in 1991-92, when he scored two centuries to finish with 380 runs at an average of 63.3, and was selected for south zone in the Duleep Trophy.



International Career of Dravid



Dravid had a disappointing start to his career, making his debut in one-dayers against the Sri Lankan cricket team in Singapore, immediately after the World Cup in March 1996 where he replaced Vinod Kambli. Subsequently, he was dropped from the team, until he was picked again for the tour of England.

He then made his debut in the second test against England, along with Sourav Ganguly, when Sanjay Manjrekar got injured after the first test match on that tour. Rahul scored 95 and held his position on Manjrekar's return for the third test, scoring 84.

After moderate performance in home series against Australia and South Africa, Dravid broke through on the 1996-97 tour of South Africa. He batted at No. 3 in the third test in Johannesburg, scoring his maiden century with 148 and 81, the top score in each innings, to claim his first Man of the Match Award at 19. He made his first half-century against Pakistan in the Sahara Cup in 1996, scoring 90 in his 10th ODI.

In the 18 months ending in mid-1998, he played in an away series against the West Indies, home and an away series against Sri Lanka, and a home series against Australia. He scored consistently, with 964 runs at an average of 56.7. He scored 11 half-centuries, but was unable to convert them to triple figures.

He scored his second century in late 1998 against Zimbabwe in a one-off test match, top scoring in both innings with 148 and 44, but was unable to prevent an Indian defeat. He became the third Indian batsman after Vijay Hazare and Sunil Gavaskar to score centuries in both innings of a match during the 1999 New Year's test match against New Zealand with 190 and 103 to force a draw .

He had a moderate season in the subcontinent in early 1999, scoring 269 runs at an average of 38.42 with one century before scoring 239 at an average of 39.8, including a century against New Zealand in late 1999. This was followed by a poor away series against Australia and another poor home series against South Africa, accumulating just 187 runs at an average of 18.7.

He then scored 200, his first double century against Zimbabwe in Delhi, which along with 70 in the second inning helped India to victory. It was the first time he had passed 50 in 12 months, and he followed this with a 162 in the following test, giving him 432 runs in the two match series at an average of 432.

In the second test of a three-match test series against Australia at Kolkata in 2001, Dravid joined hands with VVS Laxman to produce one of the greatest comeback victories in the history of the game. Following on, the pair put on 376 runs for the fifth wicket in the second innings of the match. Dravid scored 180 while Laxman made 281. Though Dravid ended up second best, it remains one of his greatest performances to date.

Later that year in Port Elizabeth against South Africa, he made a crucial match-saving 87 runs in the second innings to deny South Africa the win.

Dravid started to emerge out of Tendulkar's shadow and established himself as India's premier test batsman in 2002. In the month of April, at Georgetown, West Indies in the first test match of the series, he scored an unbeaten 144 in the first innings after being hit by a Mervyn Dillon delivery.

Later that year, he raked up four consecutive centuries against England and West Indies. In August 2002, against England at Headingley Stadium, Leeds in the third test match of the series, he scored a 148 in the first innings on a seamer-friendly to set up a famous Indian win. He won the Man of the Match Award for this performance.

Dravid's astonishing aggregate of 602 runs in the four match test series against England also fetched him the Man of the Series Award. In 2003-2004 season, Dravid scored three double centuries, one each against New Zealand, Australia, and Pakistan. Against Australia in the second match of the four match series, the batting pair of Dravid and VVS Laxman proved to be Australia's nemesis.

In the first innings, India was looking down the barrel at four wickets, down for 85 runs in reply to Australia's massive 556 when the duo joined hands. By the time their partnership was broken, the pair had put on 303 runs. Laxman was dismissed for 148 while Dravid went on to make 233. At that time, this was the highest individual score by an Indian batsman overseas.

By the time Dravid was done, India was only 33 short of Australia's first innings score.

Dravid followed this with an unbeaten 72 under immense pressure in the second innings to set up a famous victory. Dravid scored 619 runs in that four match series against Australia at an average of 103.16, and won the Man of the Series Award. During the latter part of the season, Dravid, in Ganguly's absence, led India to its first test victory over Pakistan in the first test match at Multan.

In the third and final match of the series at Rawalpindi, Dravid stroked a masterful 270, to take India to a historic test series win over Pakistan.



Rahul Career Heights



With a strong technique, he has been the backbone for the Indian cricket team. His nickname of "The Wall" in Reebok advertisements has now become a tribute to his consistency.

Dravid has scored 26 centuries in test cricket, at an average of 53.11, including five double centuries. In one-dayers, though, he has an average of 39.49 and a strike rate of 71.22. He is one of the few Indians who averages more at away matches than at home, averaging over 10 more runs a match abroad than on Indian pitches.

As of Aug. 9, 2006, Dravid's average in overseas tests stood at 65.28, against his overall test average of 55.41, and his average for away ODI stands at 42.03, against his overall ODI average of 39.49. In matches that India has won, Dravid averages 78.72 in tests and 53.40 in ODIs.

Dravid's sole test wicket was that of Ridley Jacobs in the fourth test against the West Indies during the 2001-2002 series. While he has no pretensions to being a bowler, Dravid often kept wicket for India in ODIs. He has since delegated the wicket-keeping gloves, first to Parthiv Patel and more recently to Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

Dravid is now purely a batsman, one who has averaged 63.51 in matches played since Jan. 1, 2000.

Dravid was involved in two of the largest partnerships in ODIs—a 318-run partnership with Sourav Ganguly, the first pair to combine for a 300-run partnership, and then a 331-run partnership with Sachin Tendulkar, which is the present world record. He also holds the record for the greatest number of innings since debut, before being dismissed for a duck.

His highest scores in ODIs and tests are 153 and 270, respectively. Uniquely, each of his five double centuries in tests was a higher score than his previous double century (200, 217, 222, 233, 270).

Also, Dravid is the current world record holder for the highest percentage contribution of runs scored in matches won under a single captain, where the captain has won more than 20 tests. In the 21 test matches India won under Sourav Ganguly's leadership, Dravid played his part in every single one of those wins, scoring at a record average of 102.84 and piling up an astonishing 2571 runs, with nine hundreds—three of them double-centuries—and 10 fifties in 32 innings.

He contributed nearly 23 percent of the total runs scored by India in those 21 matches, which is almost one run out of every four runs the team scored.



Dravid downfall



After the England series however, he stepped down as captain of India due to personal reasons. Mahendra Singh Dhoni took over as ODI captain. Anil Kumble replaced him in test matches.

In 2007, he was dropped from the Indian ODI Squad following a poor series against Australia. Dravid went back to play for Karnataka in the Ranji Trophy, scoring 218 against Mumbai.

In 2008, he made 93 in the first innings of the Perth test, the highest score of the match, to help India win and make the series 1-2. However, he was ignored by selectors for the subsequent one-day tri-series.



Criticism



One of Dravid's most debated decisions was taken in March 2004, when he was standing in as captain for an injured Sourav Ganguly. The Indian's first innings was declared at a point when Sachin Tendulkar was at 194 with 16 overs remaining on day two.

Rahul Dravid has had a mixed record when leading India in Tests. India lost the Karachi test in 2006, giving Pakistan the series 1-0. In March 2006, India lost the Mumbai test, giving England its first test victory in India since 1985, enabling Flintoff's men to draw the series 1-1.

While the loss in Karachi could be put down to several Indian batsmen playing badly, the defeat in Mumbai was arguably the result of Dravid's decision to bowl first on a flat dry pitch which later deteriorated and ended with an Indian collapse in the run chase.

He was criticised by Vijay Mallya for not picking the team with right balance since Dravid's team Bangalore Royal Challengers was the second to last team in the 2008 Indian Premier League.

After India failed to qualify for the finals of the DLF Cup, Indian skipper Rahul Dravid was criticised by former all-rounder Ravi Shastri who said that he was not assertive enough and let Greg Chappell make too many decisions.

Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar

Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar, born April 24, 1973 in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India, is an Indian cricketer widely regarded as one of the greatest batsmen in the history of cricket.

In 2002, Wisden ranked him the second greatest test batsman of all time, second only to Sir Donald Bradman and the second greatest one-day international (ODI) batsman of all time next only to Sir Viv Richards. The list was later revised to make him the greatest ODI of all time.

In September 2007, Shane Warne, the world-record breaking Australian leg spinner, rated Sachin Tendulkar as the greatest player he has played with or against. Tendulkar was the only player of the current generation to be included in Bradman's Eleven, the dream team of Sir Donald Bradman, as published in his biography. He is sometimes referred to as the Little Master or the Master Blaster.

After Sir Don Bradman claimed Sachin to be his replica in test cricket, one would not make any mistakes to keep the little master out of their Top 10 list of best test batsmen. But it seemed that the ICC thought the other way when it not only kept the star out of the Top 20 “ICC Best Ever Ratings.”

According to ICC, the Mumbaikar did not deserve to be placed above the 26th rank, whereas Kumara Sangakara, Matthew Hayden, Mike Hussey, Kevin Pietersen, and Neil Harvey could easily find a berth for themselves. The only Indian who could squeeze himself into the Top 20 was Sunil Gavaskar, who is just ahead of West Indies’ George Headley.

IPL Master Blaster



Tendulkar was made the icon player and captain for his home side, the Mumbai Indians, in the inaugural Indian Premier League Twenty 20 competition in 2008. As an icon player, he was signed for a $1.12 million, 15 percent more than the second-highest paid player on the team, Sanath Jayasuriya. But despite Sachin's heroics, Mumbai did not qualify for the semis of the IPL tournament.

Personal Life

Sachin was born in Bombay. His father, Ramesh Tendulkar, a Marathi novelist, named Tendulkar after his favourite music director, Sachin Dev Burman. Tendulkar's elder brother, Ajit, encouraged him to play cricket. Tendulkar has two other siblings; a brother, Nitin, and sister, Savitai. In 1995, Tendulkar married Anjali (born Nov. 10, 1967), a pediatrician and daughter of Gujarati industrialist Anand Mehta. They have two children: Sara (born Oct. 12, 1997), and Arjun (born Sept. 24, 1999).

The Little Master



Tendulkar currently holds the records for the most cumulative runs in One-Day Internationals and the most number of centuries scored in both One-Day Internationals and test cricket. He made his international debut against Pakistan in 1989 at the age of 16, becoming India's youngest test player.

Although primarily a top-order batsman, Tendulkar has often proved to be a useful and effective slow bowler. He received India's highest sporting honor, the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, in 1997-98, as well as the civilian award Padma Shri in 1999. His cricketing and batting abilities are widely regarded as genius by many stalwarts of the game; Bradman once said, "He reminds me of myself." His adoring fans call him The Little Master.

Records


Sachin is the highest run scorer in both test matches and ODIs, and also the batsman with the most centuries in either form of the game. He has become the world record test runs scorer, surpassing Brian Lara's previous mark of 11,953.

Tendulkar, 35, needed 15 runs to overtake West Indies legend Lara in the standings on the first day of the second test against Australia in Mohali. And despite being forced to go to tea on 13 not out, the Little Master came out after the interval to hit Australian debutante Peter Siddle's first ball of the session for three runs to spark wild celebrations in the ground.



On Oct. 17, 2008, when Sachin surpassed Lara's record for the most runs scored in test cricket, he also became the first batsman to score 12,000 runs in that form of the game, having also been the third batsman and first Indian to pass 11,000 runs in test cricket.

He was also the first player to score 10,000 runs in one-day internationals, and also the first player to cross every subsequent 1,000-run mark that has been crossed in ODI cricket history.

In the fourth test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia, Sachin surpassed Australia's Allan Border to become the player to cross the 50-run mark the most number of times in test cricket history, and also the second ever player to score 10 test centuries against Australia, after only Sir Jack Hobbs of England more than 70 years prioir. Sachin has been honored with the Padma Vibhushan award, India's second-highest civilian award, and the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award, India's highest sporting honor.

Early Years




Sachin attended Sharadashram Vidyamandir High School, where he began his cricketing career under the guidance of his coach and mentor, Ramakant Achrekar. During his school days, he attended the MRF Pace Foundation to train as a fast bowler, but Australian fast bowler Dennis Lillee, who took a world record 355 test wickets, was unimpressed, suggesting that Tendulkar focus on his batting instead.

When he was young, Sachin would practice for hours on end in the nets. If he became exhausted, Achrekar would put a one-rupee coin on the top of the stumps, and the bowler who dismissed Tendulkar would get the coin. If Tendulkar passed the whole session without getting dismissed, the coach would give him the coin.

Tendulkar now considers the 13 coins he won then as some of his most prized possessions.



While at school, he developed a reputation as a child prodigy. He had become a common conversation point in Mumbai circles, where there were suggestions already that he would become one of the greats. His season in 1988 was extraordinary, with Tendulkar scoring a century in every innings he played.

He was involved in an unbroken 664-run partnership in a Lord Harris Shield inter-school game in 1988 with friend and teammate Vinod Kambli, who would also go on to represent India. The destructive pair reduced one bowler to tears and made the rest of the opposition unwilling to continue the game.

Tendulkar scored 326* in this innings and scored over 1,000 runs in the tournament. This was a record partnership in any form of cricket until 2006, when it was broken by two under-13 batsmen in a match held at Hyderabad in India.

When he was 14, Indian batting legend Sunil Gavaskar gave him a pair of his own ultra light pads. "It was the greatest source of encouragement for me," he said nearly 20 years later, after surpassing Gavaskar's top world record of 34 test centuries. This was in the same year as his first-class debut. Tendulkar never played for any Under-19 teams, crossing straight into the seniors.


Early Career



On Dec. 11, 1988, aged just 15 years, Sachin scored 100 not-out in his debut first-class match for Mumbai against Gujarat, making him the youngest cricketer to score a century on his first-class debut. His first double century was for Mumbai while playing against the visiting Australian team at the Brabourne Stadium in 1998.

Sachin is the only player to score a century in all three of his Ranji Trophy, Duleep Trophy and Irani Trophy debuts.



Sachin played his first test match against Pakistan in Karachi in 1989 under the leadership of Kris Srikkanth. According to Cricinfo's Andrew Miller and Martin Williamson, India took an unconventional approach to combating the Pakistani pace attack by calling up a "baby-faced 16-year-old with one season of first-class cricket to his name."

He made just 15 runs, being bowled by Waqar Younis, who also made his debut in that match, but was impressive in how he handled numerous blows to his body at the hands of the Pakistani pace attack.

Tendulkar followed it up with his maiden test 50 a few days later at Faisalabad. His ODI debut on Dec. 18 was disappointing, though. He was dismissed without scoring a run, again by Waqar Younis. The series was followed by a tour of New Zealand in which he fell for 88 in the Second Test. His maiden test century came in the next tour, to England in August 1990 at Old Trafford.

Tendulkar further enhanced his development into a world-class batsman during the 1991–1992 tour of Australia that included an unbeaten 148 in Sydney (the first of many battles against Shane Warne, who made his debut in the match) and a century on the fast and bouncy track at Perth. Merv Hughes famously commented to Allan Border at the time that, "This little prick's going to get more runs than you, AB."

Rise of Sachin


Sachin's performance through 1994–99 coincided with his physical peak, in his early 20s. On the day of the Hindu festival Holi, Tendulkar was told to open the batting at Auckland against New Zealand in 1994. He went on to make 82 runs off 49 balls. He scored his first ODI century on Sept. 9, 1994 against Australia in Sri Lanka at Colombo. It had taken him 79 ODIs to score a century.

Tendulkar's rise continued when he was the leading run scorer at the 1996 Cricket World Cup, topping the batting averages while scoring two centuries. He was the only Indian batsman to perform in the infamous semi-final of that World Cup.

This was the beginning of a period at the top of the batting world, culminating in the Australian tour of India in early 1998, with Tendulkar scoring three consecutive centuries. These were characterized by a premeditated plan to target Australian spinners Shane Warne and Gavin Robertson, to whom he regularly charged down the pitch to drive over the infield.

This technique worked, as India beat Australia. The test match success was followed by two scintillating knocks in Sharjah, where he scored two consecutive centuries in a must-win game and then in the finals against Australia, tormenting Shane Warne once again.

Following the series, Warne ruefully joked that he was having nightmares about his Indian nemesis. He also had a role with the ball in that series, including a five-wicket haul in an ODI. Set 310 runs to win, Australia were cruising comfortably at three for 203 in the 31st over when Tendulkar turned the match for India taking wickets of Michael Bevan, Steve Waugh, Darren Lehmann, Tom Moody, and Damien Martyn for just 32 runs in 10 overs.



Tendulkar single-handedly won the ICC 1998 quarterfinal at Dhaka to pave way for India's entry into the semifinals, when he took four Australian wickets after scoring 141 runs in just 128 balls.

The worst was yet to come as Professor Ramesh Tendulkar, Tendulkar's father, died in the middle of the 1999 Cricket World Cup. Tendulkar flew back to India to attend the final rituals of his father, missing the match against Zimbabwe. However, he returned with a bang to the World Cup, scoring a century (unbeaten 140 off 101 balls) in his very next match against Kenya in Bristol. He dedicated this century to his father.

Tendulkar continued his good form in test cricket in 2001 and 2002, with some pivotal performances with both bat and ball. Tendulkar took three wickets on the final day of the famous Kolkata Test against Australia in 2001. He took the key wickets of Matthew Hayden and Adam Gilchrist, centurions in the previous test.

He made 673 runs in 11 matches in the 2003 Cricket World Cup, helping India reach the final. While Australia retained the trophy that they had won in 1999, Tendulkar was given the Man of the Tournament award. The drawn series as India toured Australia in 2003/04 saw Tendulkar making his mark in the last test of the series, with 241* in Sydney, putting India in a virtually unbeatable position.

He followed up the innings with an unbeaten 50 in the second innings of the test and then an unbeaten 194 against Pakistan at Multan in the following series. The 194 was controversial in that he was stranded prior to reaching his double century as a result of a declaration by Rahul Dravid.

In meeting with the press that evening, Tendulkar responded to a question on missing 200 against Pakistan by stating that he was disappointed and that the declaration had taken him by surprise.

On Dec. 10, 2005, at Feroz Shah Kotla, Tendulkar scored his record-breaking 35th test century, against the Sri Lankans. On Feb. 6, 2006, he scored his 39th ODI hundred in a match against Pakistan. He followed with a run-a-ball 42 in the second one-day international against Pakistan on Feb. 11, and then a 95 in hostile, seaming conditions on Feb. 13 in Lahore, which set up an Indian victory.


Sachin as Captain



Tendulkar's two tenures as captain of the Indian cricket team were not very successful. When Tendulkar took over as captain in 1996, it was with huge hopes and expectations. However, by 1997, the team was performing poorly. Azharuddin was credited with saying "He won't win! It's not in the small one's destiny."

Tendulkar, succeeding Azharuddin as captain for his second term, then led India on a tour of Australia, where the visitors were comprehensively beaten 3-0 by the newly-crowned world champions. After another test series defeat, this time by a 0-2 margin at home against South Africa, Tendulkar resigned and Sourav Ganguly took over as captain in 2000.


Injuries

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A chronic back problem flared up when Pakistan toured India in 1999, with India losing the historic test at Chepauk despite a gritty century from Tendulkar himself.

Although he was in strong form in season 2004, tennis elbow then took its toll on Tendulkar, leaving him out of the side for most of the year, coming back only for the last two tests when Australia toured India in 2004. He played a part in India's victory in Mumbai in that series, though Australia took the series 2-1.

After the 2006 series against England, news of a shoulder operation raised more questions about his longevity. Tendulkar was operated upon for his injured shoulder. In July 2006, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced that Tendulkar had overcome his injury problem following a rehabilitation program and was available for selection, and he was eventually selected for the next series.


Famous 2001 tour of Africa, The Mike Denness Incident
In the second test of India's 2001 tour of South Africa, match referee Mike Denness fined four Indian players for excessive appealing as well as the Indian captain Sourav Ganguly for not controlling his team. Tendulkar was given a suspended ban of one game in light of alleged ball tampering.

Television cameras picked up images that suggested Tendulkar may have been involved in cleaning the seam of the cricket ball in the second test match between India and South Africa at St George's Park, Port Elizabeth. This can, under some conditions, amount to altering the condition of the ball.

Denness found Tendulkar guilty of ball tampering charges and handed him a one test match ban. The incident escalated to include allegations of racism and led to Denness being barred from entering the venue of the third test match.

After a thorough investigation, the International Cricket Council revoked the official status of the match and the ban on Tendulkar was lifted. Tendulkar's ball tampering charges and Sehwag's ban for excessive appealing triggered a massive backlash from the Indian public and even the Indian parliament.


Failures


On March 19, 2006, after scoring an unconvincing 1 off 21 balls against England in the first innings of the third test in his home ground, Wankhede, Tendulkar was booed off the ground by a section of the crowd, the first time that he had ever faced such flak. Tendulkar was to end the three-test series without a single half-century to his credit.

In the preparation for the 2007 Cricket World Cup, Tendulkar was criticized by Greg Chappell on his attitude. As per the report, Chappell felt that Tendulkar would be more useful down the order, while the latter felt that he would be better off opening the innings, the role he had played for most of his career.

Chappell also believed that Tendulkar's repeated failures were hurting the team's chances. In a rare show of emotion, Tendulkar hit out at the comments attributed to Chappell by pointing out that no coach has ever suggested his attitude towards cricket is incorrect. On April 7, 2007, the Board of Control for Cricket in India issued a notice to Tendulkar asking for an explanation for his comments made to the media.

At the Cricket World Cup 2007 in the West Indies, Tendulkar and the Indian cricket team, led by Rahul Dravid, had a dismal campaign. Tendulkar, who was pushed to bat lower down the order by Chappell, had scores of seven (Bangladesh), 57* (Bermuda) and zero (Sri Lanka). As a result, former Australian captain Ian Chappell, brother Greg, called for Tendulkar to retire in his column for Mumbai's Mid-Day newspaper.

Comeback



In the 2007 series against Bangladesh, Tendulkar returned to his opening slot and was Man of the Series. He continued by scoring two consecutive scores of 90+ in the Future Cup against South Africa. He was the leading run scorer and was judged the Man of the Series.

Tendulkar upon reaching his 38th test century against Australia in the second Test at the SCG in 2008, where he finished not out on 154.

On the second day of the Nottingham Test (July 28, 2007), Tendulkar became the third cricketer to complete 11,000 test runs. In the subsequent one-day series against England, Tendulkar was the leading run scorer from India with an average of 53.42. In the ODI Series against Australia in October 2007, he also was the leading Indian run scorer with 278.

Tendulkar was dismissed seven times in 2007 between 90 and 100, including three times at 99, leading some to suggest that he struggles to cope with nerves in this phase of his career. Tendulkar has got out 23 times between 90 and 100 in his international career.

On Nov. 8, 2007 he got out on 99 against Pakistan in an ODI at Mohali to the bowling of Umar Gul caught by Kamran Akmal. In the fourth ODI, he got out on 97 (off 102 balls with 16 fours) after dragging a delivery from Umar Gul on to his stumps, falling short of another century in ODIs in 2007.



In the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, 2007-08, Tendulkar showed exceptional form, becoming the leading run scorer with 493 runs in four tests, despite consistently failing in the second innings. Sachin scored 62 runs in the first innings of the first test at the MCG in Melbourne, but couldn't prevent a heavy 337-run win for Australia.

In the controversial New Year's Test at Sydney, Tendulkar scored an unbeaten 154 as India lost the test. This was his third century at the SCG, earning him an average of 221.33 at the ground. In the third test at the WACA in Perth, Sachin was instrumental in India's first innings score of 330, scoring a well-compiled 71, only to be dismissed by what was later confirmed to be a questionable LBW decision.

India went on to record a historic triumph at the WACA. In the fourth test at Adelaide, which ended in a draw, he scored 153 in the first innings, involving in a crucial 126 run stand with V.V.S. Laxman for the fifth wicket to lead India to a score of 282 for five from 156 for four. He secured the Player of the Match award.

In the One-Day International Commonwealth Bank Tri-Series involving Sri Lanka and Australia, Tendulkar became the first and only batsman to complete 16,000 runs in ODIs. He achieved this feat against Sri Lanka on Feb. 5, 2008 at Brisbane. He started the CB series well, notching up scores of 10, 35, 44 and 32, but could not convert the starts into bigger scores.

His form dipped a bit in the middle of the tournament, but Sachin came back strongly in India's must-win game against Sri Lanka at Hobart, scoring 63 off 54 balls. He finished the series with a match winning 117 not out of 120 balls in the first final, and 91 runs in the second final.

County Career



In 1992, at 19, Tendulkar became the first overseas player to represent Yorkshire (Craig White, although born in Yorkshire, was the first player to be signed as an overseas player by Yorkshire. He had to be listed as an overseas player as he had already played for Victoria in Australia). Tendulkar played 16 first-class matches for the county and scored 1070 runs at an average of 46.52.

Style of Play


Sachin is ambidextrous. He bats, bowls, and throws with his right hand, but writes with his left hand. He also practices left-handed throws at the nets on a regular basis. Cricinfo columnist Sambit Bal has described him as the "most wholesome batsman of his time."

His batting is based on complete balance and poise while limiting unnecessary movements and flourishes. He appears to show little preference for the slow and low wickets which are typical in India, and has scored many centuries on the hard, bouncy pitches in the Caribbean Islands and Australia.

He is known for his unique punch style of hitting the ball over square. He is also renowned for his picture-perfect straight drive, often completed with no follow through. Recently, legendary Indian batsman Sunil Gavaskar, in an article he wrote in the AFP, remarked that "it is hard to imagine any player in the history of the game who combines classical technique with raw aggression like the little champion does."



Bradman considered Tendulkar to have a batting style similar to his. In his biography, it is stated that "Bradman was most taken by Tendulkar's technique, compactness and shot production, and had asked his wife to have a look at Tendulkar, having felt that Tendulkar played like him. Bradman's wife, Jessie, agreed that they did appear similar."

New Playing Style


He was affected by a series of injuries since 2004. Since then, Tendulkar's batting has tended to be less attacking. Explaining this change in his batting style, he has acknowledged that he is batting differently due to that fact that (1) No batsman can bat the same way for the entire length of a long career, and (2) He is a senior member of the team now and thus has more responsibility.

During the early part of his career, he was a more attacking batsman and frequently scored centuries at close to a run a ball. Ian Chappell recently remarked that "Tendulkar now is nothing like the player he was when he was a young bloke." However, during the latest tour of Australia in 2008, Tendulkar displayed glimpses of his attacking style with several masterful innings, dominating attacks in a manner reminiscent of his younger days.

Honors and Community Involvement


Sachin sponsors 200 underprivileged children every year through Apnalaya, a Mumbai-based NGO associated with his mother-in-law, Annaben Mehta. He is reluctant to speak about his charitable activities, choosing to preserve the sanctity of his personal life despite the media interest in him.



* Padma Vibhushan, India's second highest civilian award, 2008.
* ICC World ODI XI: 2004, 2007
* Player of the tournament in 2003 Cricket World Cup
* Wisden Cricketer of the Year: 1997
* Padma Shri, India's fourth highest civilian award, 1999.
* Arjuna Award, by the Government of India in recognition of his outstanding achievement in Cricket, 1994.
* Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, India’s highest honor given for achievement in sports, 1997-98.

In September 2007, former Australian leg-spinner Shane Warne published his list of 50 greatest cricketers ever, in which Sachin had secured the No. 1 spot. In January 2008, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown suggested that Sachin should be conferred with an honorary knighthood for his contribution to international cricket.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni

Mahendra Singh Dhoni, nick name Mahi, Also abbreviated as MS Dhoni, is currently Indian captain and wicketkeeper. Mahi born on July 7, 1981 in Lavali Village Almora, Uttarakhand is an Indian cricketer and the current captain of the Indian One day and Test team.

Initially recognized as an profligately colorful and vicious batsman, Mahi has come to be regarded as one of the coolest heads to captain the Indian side. Under his captaincy, India won the 2007 ICC World Twenty20, CB Series of 2007-08 and IDEA Cup India-Sri Lanka ODI Series of 2008, the first ever bilateral ODI series win of India in Sri Lanka and The Border-Gavaskar trophy 2008 in which they beat Australia 2-0 thus letting India regain its spot at No. 2 in world test rankings.

Dhoni, currently the number one ODI batsman, also recently captained the team that beat England in the ODI series 5-0 and In Test series 1-0. Mahendra Singh Dhoni was awarded the ODI Player of the Year award in 2008, the first Indian player to achieve this feat.



Personal life of Mahi


Mahi was born in Ranchi, Jharkhand to Pan Singh and Devaki Devi. His paternal village Lvali is in the Lamgarha block of the Almora District of Uttarachal. Mahi's parents, moved from Uttarakhand to Ranchi where Pan Singh worked in junior management positions in MECON. Mahi has a sister Jayanti and a brother Narendra.



MS Dhoni - Mahi Childhood Interest



Mahi had long hair which he has now shortened—he cut it because he wanted to look like his favourite film star John Abraham. Mahi is a fan of Adam Gilchrist, and his childhood idols were cricket teammate Sachin Tendulkar, Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan, and singer Lata Mangeshkar.



MS Dhoni - Mahi in IPL


M.S.Dhoni was contracted by the Chennai Super Kings for 1.5 Million USD. This made him the most expensive player in the IPL Auctions which was closely followed by Andrew Symonds. Dhoni is the present captain of the Chennai Super Kings team. Mahi help his team to reach the inaugural DLf IPL final.



Controversies with Mahi



On the fourth day of the first test match at Antigua Recreation Ground, St John's, Antigua during India's tour of West Indies, 2006, Dhoni's flick off Dave Mohammed to the midwicket region was caught by Daren Ganga.

As the batsman started to walk back, captain Dravid declared the innings when confusion started as the umpires were not certain if the fielder stepped on the ropes and Dhoni stayed for the umpire's verdict. While the replays were inconclusive, the captain of the West Indies side, Brian Lara, wanted Dhoni to walk-off based on the fielder's assertion of the catch.The impasse continued for more than 15 minutes and Lara's temper was on display with finger wagging against the umpires and snatching the ball from umpire Asad Rauf.

Ultimately, Dhoni walked-off and Dravid's declaration was effected but the game was delayed, and Lara's action was criticized by the commentators and former players. Lara was called by the match referee for explanation of his actions but was not fined by the match referee.

After the loss to Bangladesh in 2007 Cricket World Cup, the house that Dhoni was constructing in his home-town Ranchi was vandalized and damaged by political activists of JMM. The local police arranged for security for his family as India exited the World cup in the first round.

Mahi is also popular for off-field tuning with Film Star Deepika Padoukone. But both of them denied this. Mahi is still a most wanted bachlor of the India.



Mahi Awards and achievements



* Mahendra Singht Dhoni - Mahi have been chosen for the Padma Shri awards for year 2009.

* Mahi was awarded the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award, the country's highest sports honour, for his contribution to India's success in the 20-20 world championship.

* MS Dhoni has won the ODI Player of the Year 2008 award at the LG ICC Awards ceremony in Dubai,becoming the first Indian player to get this particular award.

* MS Dhoni also received nomination for the inaugural International Twenty20 Performer of the Year 2008 award, for leading his team to victory at the ICC World Twenty20 2007 in South Africa.

* Mahi was selected for the ICC World ODI Team of the Year 2008.

* MS Dhoni was voted as MTV Youth Icon 2006 and he also joins cricketers Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar in winning the award.

* MS Dhoni is the amazing icon of the Pogo TV amazing kids awards.

* Mahi has been picked up by the Australian newspaper Herald Sun as a member of the world team of the year 2008 along side Sachin Tendulkar.

* MS Dhoni was selected by the Australian daily Sydney Morning Herald in its World Dream XI Test team of 2008 as the captain and wicket keeper.

* MS Dhoni has been adjudged as the player of the year 2008 along side Indian Prime MinisterDr Manmohan Singh and Bollywood actor Shahrukh Khan in a poll conducted by an Indian News Channel Samay.



Mahi start career as ODI Keeper/Batsman



With Mahi making a mark in the India-A squad, he was picked in the ODI squad for the Bangladesh tour in 2004-05. Dhoni did not have a great start to his ODI career, getting run out for a duck on debut. In spite of an average series against Bangladesh, Dhoni was picked for the Pakistan ODI series.

In the second match of the series, Dhoni in his fifth one-day international, scored 148 in Vishakapatnam off only 123 deliveries. Dhoni's 148 erased the earlier record for the highest score by an Indian wicketkeeper, a record that he would re-write before the end of the year.

In Oct-Nov 2005 series, Sri Lanka had set India a target of 299 in Jaipur, after a Kumar Sangakkara century and in reply India lost Tendulkar early. Dhoni was promoted to accelerate the scoring and ended the game with an unbeaten 183 off 145 balls, winning the game for India—innings described in Wisden as 'Uninhibited, yet anything but crude'.

The innings set various records including the highest score in ODI cricket in the second innings, a record that still stands. Dhoni ended the series with the highest run aggregate (346) and was awarded the Man of the series award for his efforts. In December 2005, Dhoni was signed by BCCI to a B-grade contract, skipping the initial C-grade level due to his performance on the cricketing field.

India scored 328 in 50 overs with Dhoni contributing 68 in their first match of 2006 against Pakistan. However the team finished poorly, scoring just 43 runs in the last eight overs and lost the match due to Duckworth-Lewis method. In the third match of the series, Dhoni came in with India in a precarious situation and scored 72 runs off just 46 balls that included 13 boundaries to help India take a 2-1 lead in the series. The final match of the series had a repeat performance as Dhoni scored 77 runs off 56 balls to enable India win the series 4-1.

In recognition of his consistent ODI performances, Dhoni overtook Ricky Ponting as number one in the ICC ODI rankings for batsmen on April 20, 2006. His reign lasted just a week as Adam Gilchrist's performance against Bangladesh moved him to the top spot.

Preparations for the 2007 Cricket World Cup improved as India recorded identical 3-1 victories over West Indies and Sri Lanka and Dhoni had averages in excess of 100 in both these series. However, India unexpectedly crashed out the World Cup after losses to Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. Dhoni was out for a duck in both these matches and scored 29 runs in the whole tournament.

Dhoni put behind his disappointment in the World cup by scoring 91* against Bangladesh after India were left in a tight spot earlier in the run-chase. Dhoni was declared the man of the match for his performance, his fourth in ODI cricket. He was also later adjudged the man of the series after the third game of the series was washed away.

Dhoni had a good Afro-Asia Cup, getting 174 runs in three matches at an average of 87.00, with a blitzkrieg 139 not out of 97 balls, a Man Of The Match innings, in the 3rd ODI.



Test career of Mahi



Following his good one-day form against Sri Lanka, Dhoni replaced Dinesh Karthik in December 2005 as the Indian Test wicket-keeper. Dhoni scored 30 runs in his debut match that was marred by rain. Dhoni came to the crease when the team was struggling at 109/5 and as wickets kept falling around him, he played an aggressive innings and was the last man dismissed.

Dhoni made his maiden half-century in the second Test and his quick scoring rate (half century came off 51 balls) aided India to set a target of 436 and the Sri Lankans were bowled out for 247.

India toured Pakistan in January/February 2006 and Mahi scored his maiden century in the second Test at Faisalabad. India were left in a tight spot as Dhoni was joined by Irfan Pathan with the team still 107 away from avoiding follow-on. Dhoni played his typical aggressive innings as he scored his maiden test century in just 93 balls after scoring his first 50 in just 34 deliveries.



Mahi become the captain of India



Dhoni was nominated as the vice-captain of the ODI team for the series against South Africa in Ireland. Dhoni was elected as captain of Indian Twenty-20 Cricket Team for the World Twenty20 in September 2007. On 2 September 2007 Mahendra Singh Dhoni equalled his idol Adam Gilchrist's international record for the most dismissals in an innings in ODI by catching five English players and stumping one.

He led India to the ICC World Twenty 20 trophy in South Africa with a victory over arch rivals Pakistan in an intensely fought final on 24 September 2007, and became the second Indian captain to have won a World cup in any form of cricket, after Kapil Dev. Against Aus in home series 2008-09 after Anil Kumble (Jumbo) retirement from International cricket, Mahi become the Test Captain of the India side.



Mahi As Captain

Dhoni was recommended for captaincy by Sachin Tendulkar. In 2007, when Rahul Dravid resigned as Test and ODI captain, Sachin Tendulkar was offered captaincy by the board of selectors and Sharad Pawar, but Sachin politely refused and said, "Give it to someone like Dhoni".

The Board agreed.

In Mahi captaincy, Team India went on to win the inaugural T20 cricket World Cup 2007. In Mahi captaincy, India manage first ever trilateral ODI series win in Australia in CB Series of 2007-08. In Dhoni Captaincy, India manage first ever bilateral ODI series win in Sri Lanka (IDEA CUP 2008). He captained Team India to win the Border-Gavaskar Trophy at home versus Australia. India went on to win the coveted four match Test series(2-0).

Previous captains Anil Kumble and Sourav Ganguly have said that under Dhoni India will reach greater heights and even all-time great Richard Hadlee said that, "Under Dhoni, India will become the world No. 1 team" and he also said that by this 2-0 win that the Australian dominance in the cricket world had finally come to an end.

Dhoni has already been compared to Australia's Steve Waugh for his captaincy skills. In the battle of nerves, the mental toughness accompanied with the cool temperament exhibited by Dhoni resembles the times of Steve Waugh’s leadership.



Mahi Test records

Dhoni's maiden century against Pakistan in Faisalabad (148) is the fastest century scored by an Indian wicket keeper. Only three centuries by two players (Kamran Akmal and Adam Gilchrist—two) were faster than Dhoni's 93 ball century.

Under Dhoni's captainship, India defeated Australia by 320 runs on October 21, 2008. It is the biggest win ever in terms of runs for India.



Mahi ODI records

On 31 October 2005 Dhoni scored 183* runs of just 145 balls against Sri Lanka in Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur. The following is the list of records created during the innings.

The score of 183* is the highest in ODI cricket in the second innings (Earlier record: 153 by Lara). During the epic Aus-SA 2006 match, Herschelle Gibbs came close to the record by scoring 175. The innings featured 10 Sixes, the most by an Indian in an Innings, and the second highest in ODI cricket (The highest is 11 by Sanath Jayasuriya and Shahid Afridi).

He broke Adam Gilchrist's record of 172 for the highest score made by a wicket keeper.
The innings set the record for the most number of runs scored in boundaries (120 - 15x4; 10x6) breaking the record held by Saeed Anwar. The record was broken by Herschelle Gibbs (126 runs in boundaries - 21x4; 7x6) against Australia during his knock of 175.

In the same match, Kumar Sangakkara also made a century, making it the first match in which both wicket keepers scored a century

The score of 183* equaled the record of the highest score against Sri Lanka in ODI cricket set by Ganguly during the 1999 Cricket World Cup.

Among Indian batsmen who have played more than 50 matches, Dhoni has the highest average (65). Dhoni's batting average is also the highest amongst wicketkeepers in ODIs.

In April 2006, Dhoni was briefly ranked No.1 in the ICC one day Batsmen's ratings. He achieved the position again towards the end of 2008.

In June 2007, Dhoni (139*) and Mahela Jayawardene (107)[64] set a new world record for the sixth wicket partnership of 218 runs against Africa XI during the Afro-Asia Cup.
Dhoni erased Shaun Pollock's record for highest individual runs by a number seven batsman in one-day internationals during his unbeaten innings of 139.

Incidentally, Pollock record stood for just three days as his score of 130 came in the first match of the 2007 Afro-Asia Cup while Dhoni's century came in the third and final match of the series.

Dhoni also holds the records of the most dismissals by an Indian wicketkeeper and joint International (with Adam Gilchrist) with 6 dismissals (5 catches and one stumping) against England at Headlingly 2 September 2007.



Mahi Turn As Cricketer



Mahi studied at DAV Jawahar Vidya Mandir, Shyamali, Ranchi, and Jharkahnd where he initially excelled in badminton and football and was selected at district and club level in these sports.

Mahi was a goalkeeper for his football team and was sent to play cricket for a local cricket club by his football coach. Though he had not played cricket, Mahi impressed with his wicket-keeping skills and became the regular wicketkeeper at the Commando cricket club (1995-1998).

Based on his performance at club cricket, he was picked for the 1997/98 season Vinoo Mankad Trophy Under-16 Championship and he performed well.
Mahi Career as Junior cricket

Mahi was included in the Bihar U-19 squad for the 1998/99 season and scored 176 runs in five matches (seven innings) as the team finished fourth in the group of six and did not make it to the quarter finals. Bihar U-19 cricket team advanced to the finals of the 1999-2000 Cooch Behar Trophy where Dhoni made 84 to help Bihar post a total of 357. Bihar's efforts were dwarfed by Punjab U-19's 839 with Dhoni's future national squad teammate Yuvraj Singh making 358.

Dhoni's contribution for the tournament included 488 runs (nine matches, 12 innings), five 50s, 17 catches and seven stumpings. MS Dhoni made it to the East Zone U-19 squad for the CK Nayudu trophy but scored only 97 runs in four matches as East Zone lost all four matches and finished last in the tournament.



Mahi Domestic career

Mahi made his Ranji Trophy debut for Bihar in the 1999-2000 season as an 18-year-old. He made a half century in his debut match scoring 68* in the second innings against Assam cricket team. Mahi finished the season with 283 runs in five matches. Mahi scored his maiden first-class century against Bengal in the 2000/01 season in a losing cause.

Apart from the century, his performance in the 2000/01[14] did not include another score over 50 and in 2001/02 season he scored just five 50 in each season in four Ranji matches. Dhoni's performance for the 2002/03 season in the Ranji Trophy included three half centuries in the Ranji Trophy and a couple of half-centuries in the Deodhar Trophy competition as he started winning recognition for his lower-order run contribution as well as hard hitting batting style.

In the 2003/04 season, Dhoni scored a century (128*) against Assam in the first match of the Ranji ODI trophy. He was part of the East Zone squad that won the Deodhar Trophy for the year and contributed with 244 runs in four matches. In the Duleep Trophy finals, Dhoni was picked over International cricketer Deep Dasgupta to represent East zone. He scored a fighting half century in the second innings in a losing cause.



Mahi Performance in India A Team

He was recognized for his efforts in the 2003/04 season, especially in the ODI format and was picked for the India A squad for a tour of Zimbabwe and Kenya. Against the Zimbabwe XI in Harare Sports Club, Dhoni had his best wicket-keeping effort with seven catches and four stumpings in the match.

In the tri-nation tournament involving Kenya, India 'A' and Pakistan 'A', Dhoni helped India 'A' chase their target of 223 against Pakistan 'A' with an half-century. Stressing on his performance, he scored back to back centuries - 120[21] and 119*[22] against the same squad.

Dhoni scored 362 runs in seven matches (six innings, Ave:72.40), and his performance in the series received attention from the then captain—Sourav Ganguly amongst others.



Criticisum Against Mahi

From the start of the WI ODI series, Dhoni had played 16 matches, hit just two 50s and averaged 25.93.

Dhoni received criticism on his wicket keeping technique from former wicketkeeper Syed Kirmani. Against England in 2006 home series, Mahi and the Indian fielders dropped too many catches and missed many dismissal chances including a key stumping opportunity of Andrew Flintoff.

Mahi failed to collect the Harbhajan Singh delivery cleanly as Flintoff went on to make 36 more runs as England set a target of 313 for the home team, a target that India were never in the reckoning. A batting collapse saw the team being dismissed for 100 and Dhoni scored just five runs and faced criticism for his wicket-keeping lapses as well as his shot selections.

Mahi is also critisized for not going for the victory over England in the fourth and fifth day of the Mohali test in the 2008 home series second and final match.



Mahi playing style



Mahi is an aggressive right-handed batsman and wicket-keeper. Mahi tends to play mostly from the back foot with a pronounced bottom hand grip. He has a very fast hand speed through the ball which often results in the ball racing across the ground. From this initial stance his feets do not show much movement which sometimes results in chasing balls while not coming to the pitch of the ball or inside edging a lot of balls.

As a batsman, Mahi has shown the maturity to restrain his aggressive nature and play a responsible innings when the situation requires. Apart from traditional shots, Mahi has two very unorthodox but effective cricket strokes.

Since his entry into the Indian cricket team, Mahi's aggressive batting style, success on the field, personality, and long hair have made him one of the most marketable cricketers in India.