Former India captain and wicketkeeper-batsman MS Dhoni received Padma Bhushan on Monday, exactly seven years after leading the Indian cricket team to its second World Cup triumph in 2011. Dhoni received the country's third highest civilian award from President Ram Nath Kovind at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi.
The 36-year-old Ranchi-based batsman came to the ceremony in his Lieutenant Colonel uniform and walked like an army personnel to receive the honour. Dhoni was conferred with the honorary Lieutenant Colonel rank by the Indian Territorial Army on November 1, 2011, after India's World Cup glory.
On this day in 2011, then India captain struck Sri Lanka pacer Nuwan Kulasekara for a huge six over long-on to end India's long wait of 28 years to get their hands around the coveted World Cup trophy.
With this victory, India became the first team to win a World Cup at home and became the only team to win the 60-over World Cup and the 50-over World Cup. Also, this was Dhoni's second world title after having clinched the inaugural ICC World Twenty20 in South Africa in 2007. (Read full story)
Dhoni bid adieu to Test cricket in 2014 before stepping down from limited-overs captaincy in January 2017, thus handing the captaincy across all formats to Virat Kohli.
Along with Dhoni, India's ace cueist Pankaj Advani was also bestowed with the Padma Bhushan in Delhi on Monday. The 32-year-old Pune-based billiards player has won gold in Asian Games twice in 2006 Doha and 2010 Guangzhou and also known as multiple cuesport world-champion.
Advani is also considered as the best snooker player to have ever come out of the country. The cueist, who recently claimed the IBSF World Snooker Championship- his 18th world title, has bagged a total of 19 titles.
(With ANI inputs)
