One of the most loved and scrutinised cricketers to have ever been born in India - Mahendra Singh Dhoni is the perfect story for every small town boy/girl who wants to make it big in life. Hailing from the cricketing backwaters - Jharkhand, Dhoni is unarguably the second most popular player in the cricket frenzy nation after 'God' Sachin Tendulkar. Going by the statistics, Dhoni is India's most successful captain and under his leadership, India have won the top prize in all formats of the gentlemen's game - the inaugural World Twenty20 on his captaincy debut in 2007, No.1 Test ranking for 18 months starting December 2009, and the 50-over World Cup in 2011 in Mumbai. He is also the first captain in the world to win three different ICC trophies. Dhoni also led India to a memorable 2013 Champions Trophy triumph in England. During his now more than 14-years long international career, Dhoni has played an integral part in many of India's famous victories. For his impressive match-winning skills, the veteran batsman has also been christened with the tag of 'one of the best finishers in the sport', especially in the limited-overs format. However, with age catching up - Dhoni's batting abilities are on the wane but his electric reflexes and impeccable instincts behind the stumps still make him an indispensable asset to Team India. With the countdown of the 2019 ICC World Cup already started, India still needs the services of one of its biggest stalwarts who is responsible for taking the team to insurmountable heights.
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MS Dhoni seems to have played his last international game in Ranchi and now Pant gets a chance to book his boarding pass for the London-bound flight.
India batting coach Sanjay Bangar confirmed that MS Dhoni will be taking rest in the remaining ODIs.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni has now hit 217 sixes from 341 ODIs for India.
MS Dhoni presented the special caps to all the team members and the support staff soon after the warm-up session at his home ground - the JSCA International Stadium Complex in Ranchi.
The move has been mooted by none other than Lt. Col. MS Dhoni (he's with the Territorial Army) and current skipper Virat Kohli.
With the World Cup around the corner, people have been predicting the showpiece event to be Dhoni's last international outing but Ganguly thinks otherwise.
Indian skipper Virat Kohli was amused with Dhoni's gesture and posted the photo with teammates on Instagram.
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A 3-0 lead in the five-match series will be a perfect parting gift for Ranchi's favourite son, who, in all likelihood, will be seen wearing the India Blues for the last time at his home ground.
In the evening Dhoni and his wife Sakshi threw a dinner party for the team at their farmhouse in Jharkhand's capital.
If Kohli uses him smartly, Dhoni could yet provide all of us with a fairytale ending to his career that we wish for the ODI behemoth.
The domestic players in the CSK took part in a preparatory camp which began with a fitness session on Wednesday.
Just like the Sunil Gavaskar stand at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, the swanky Jharkhand State Cricket Association (JSCA) stadium will have its very own 'Mahendra Singh Dhoni Pavilion'.
The local boy was welcomed at the airport by hundreds of fans. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) took to Twitter to share the video of MS Dhoni at the airport.
Whether childhood coach Keshab Ranjan Banerjee, biology teacher Sushma Shukla or Mecon Stadium in-charge Uma Kant Jena, there is a sense of fulfilment when they talk about their tiny but significant parts in the journey of MS Dhoni.
The man, clad in a white T-shirt, ran after MS Dhoni, who relented after a few seconds and embraced him.
The veteran wicketkeeper-batsman has joined an elite club, comprising Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid.
While the 33-year-old remained not out on 81, Dhoni played a calm and composed knock of 59 not out off 72 balls as India cruised to victory to win by 6 wickets against Australia.
Kedar Jadhav was adjudged the Man-of-the-Match for his unbeaten 81 off 87 balls and figures of 1/31 from seven overs.
However, it shouldn't be lost in isolation that India made heavy weather of an easy target on a not so difficult wicket.
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