Even as Indian cricket fans were reeling under the humiliating group stage exit at ICC Cricket World Cup 2007, MS Dhoni brought home the inaugural World Twenty20 trophy from South Africa to bring back the smiles on the faces of fellow citizens.
Four years later, in 2011, Dhoni and his men created history by becoming the first team to win a Cricket World Cup at home. The team carried a huge burden of expectations, but successfully delivered under pressure.
Also read: MS Dhoni reveals Chennai Super Kings' plans for IPL 2018 auction in Bengaluru
The "Captain Cool" himself came up with a match-winning knock against Sri Lanka in the final of the quadrennial tournament at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium, which was packed to the rafters. An array of limited-overs victories followed the man from the small town - Ranchi.
As skipper of Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in Indian Premier League (IPL), Dhoni had carved a niche for himself.
Nonetheless, when results did not go the team's way in Test cricket, Dhoni made a timely decision to retire from the longest format of the game in 2014.
Looking ahead to the 2019 World Cup, the Ranchi hero once again made a bold decision last year, giving up captaincy in the limited-overs formats in order to help prepare Virat Kohli for the showpiece event.
Dhoni gearing up to lead CSK again
After having spent most of his international career and IPL career as captain, Dhoni also had to take a backseat at the now-defunct IPL franchise Rising Pune Supergiant (RPS) last year after Steve Smith replaced him as the skipper.
However, Dhoni will be back as captain once again as he is set to lead CSK on their return to IPL in the upcoming 11th edition. The 36-year-old said on Friday (January 19) that returning to captaincy will not be difficult as he believes wicketkeepers have the natural ability to lead sides.
"I was never a captain before I became the captain of Indian cricket team. So I don't think it [captaincy] is a difficult job. Secondly, the wicketkeeper is always considered the vice-captain of a team," Dhoni said during a promotional event in Chennai.
He added: "He [wicketkeeper] is somebody who is in the position where he watches the game very closely. He understands the pace of the wicket, how the bowler is bowling, how the batsman is batting.
"Before a few of us - the wicketkeepers - started captaining sides, there was talk about why burden keepers with more responsibility. But stats have proved wicketkeepers have always been good captains. Maybe because they are so close to the game, they have very good analysis of the game.
"But again, we need to have a good team. If the resources are not good, it doesn't matter who the captain is, whether it's Ricky Ponting, Steve Waugh, Clive Lloyd or any other great captains."
Meanwhile, all eight franchises are preparing for the mega auction, which will be held in Bengaluru on January 27 and 28. Having retained their core group, the teams will be gearing up to outwit each other and get big names, who are part of the auction pool.
