Chattogram was bright that day. Just too bright that the sun would’ve made you miss MS Dhoni’s batting. He got out for a duck, a run-out. It was something you couldn’t even call it as a cameo. He stood at the crease for a minute. It was kind of an anti-climax, and the things ended pretty quickly even before it was started. To make it worse, there was so much buzz about him and his technique even before his debut. Nobody escaped from the urge to judge him for the way he looked.
In 2007, when he was about to be announced as the captain of T20 World Cup team, India witnessed the release of an epic film, Chak de India. The film had two characters Rani Dispotta and Soimoi Kerketa who came from Jharkhand. In the film, there will be this man–the one who checks them into the camp– would judge them by their looks. Also, the film came right when India had lost the 50-over World Cup, and right when Dhoni’s house was vandalised. In the end, Rani and Soimoi would return to Jharkhand with the cup and of course, you know the story of Dhoni.
Nobody knows if that incident inspired Dhoni, but what we all know is that the latter did inspire millions. Even before the leader in Dhoni emerged, he did inspire millions with his style that nobody witnessed earlier.
People love statistics. They love to compare Dhoni’s number with literally everyone. The fans do that. The haters do that, but being in a position where he can be compared with captains, wicket-keepers and batters tells a lot about the contribution of the man. The numbers might lie, but the impact doesn’t. He impacted the current generation, hooked them to the TV screens, gave them beliefs. All these and much more.
He changed the way the people looked at Indian wicket-keepers. He told people that there is so much beauty in unorthodoxy. He built his own school of cricket and followed it with his whole heart. He was courageous to follow his instinct, and made brave calls, told them that it was good for the team and proved it too, most of the times.
Fair enough that on 23rd December 2004, nobody would’ve thought-even Dhoni himself- that he would go on to achieve so much. More than all his achievements, Dhoni coming from a place that wasn’t really known for cricket stands as the best. He made sure to put Jharkhand on the map and did inspire many to take up the game.
In between his first and last run-out, Dhoni climbed mountains of milestones, played the game to the best of his abilities, led India to famous victories(and disappeared when it comes to group pictures), believed in his instinct, took us through a journey of twist and turns, kept himself detached, left behind a legacy and called it off in his own style.
These mountains of milestones will be broken. India will win again. The team will see different players doing wonders for the team, but there will always be only one Dhoni.
