MS Dhoni is responsible for the current crop of Indian cricket superstars. Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Ravindra Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah, and R Ashwin all made their India debuts under Dhoni and went on to achieve great things professionally while propelling Indian cricket to unparalleled heights.
Kohli and Rohit are two of the top batsmen in the world, while Ashwin is the greatest Test spinner. Jadeja, on the other hand, is perhaps the best all-rounder in the world, ranking alongside England Test captain Ben Stokes.
Another potential all-rounder made his debut under Dhoni in 2016, and he went on to establish a name for himself.
Hardik Pandya, who had been out of the Indian squad for some time, made a spectacular return to top-flight cricket in the 2022 Indian Premier League, not only by performing with the bat and ball, but took it a step further by leading Gujarat Titans to an IPL title in his maiden stint as captain.
Hardik recalls his India debut and the unrivalled support he received from MS Dhoni.
While bowling against Australia, Hardik went for 21 runs in his first over, and while any other captain would have been hesitant to give a youngster another over, Dhoni did, and he finished with 2/37 from three overs thanks to his skipper’s faith.
“When I joined the Indian team, I saw guys whom I had seen growing up – Suresh Raina, Harbhajan Singh, Yuvraj Singh, MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli, Ashish Nehra. Even before I played for India, they were the stars. For me, when I went there it was a big thing.
“So obviously the kind of debut I had – I think I am the first cricketer who had gone for 21 runs in his first over – I genuinely felt that ok, this might be my last over. But I was very blessed and lucky to play under Mahi bhai who showed lot of trust in us which has helped us reach where we did,” Hardik told SGTV podcast.
Hardik did not bat in any of the three games, but he did take three wickets. Dhoni, on the other hand, was so taken with Hardik that he assured the all-rounder a position in India’s World Cup squad, which was still a few months away.
“Just after the third game of my international career, Mahi bhai told me you will be the World Cup team. So for me, to play World Cup or to get to know that in the third game I just got to know about this. I did not even bat in that game but he assured me that you have expressed yourself. Yeah, it was just a dream come true,” added Hardik.