(Credit BCCI)
Matthew Hayden believes that MS Dhoni possesses such immense aura and stature that he could captain the Australian cricket team if he desired. The former Australian opener, who has had the experience of playing both against and alongside Dhoni, hailed him as the most selfless cricketer. Hayden noted that Dhoni takes pride in not overshadowing the game or any individual within it. Having been a part of Chennai Super Kings under Dhoni’s captaincy during the first three IPL seasons, Hayden emphasizes that Dhoni’s X-factor lies in his tendency to avoid the spotlight and prioritize the team over individual accolades.
India’s failure to clinch an ICC title since the 2013 Champions Trophy, which marked a trio of major ICC trophies under Dhoni’s leadership – including the 2007 T20 World Cup and the 2011 World Cup – underscores his exceptional captaincy. While acknowledging the remarkable achievements of current captains Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, it’s evident that Dhoni’s legacy as one of the most outstanding captains in world cricket remains unchallenged.
“Dhoni is exactly what I was saying before. He can easily sit in an Australian dressing room and easily captain it because he believes that he is not bigger than anyone else. He’ll collect bags, he’ll throw cricket balls. He’s just a very humble individual. And he works hard at the team and not on promoting MS Dhoni,” Hayden said in a conversation with Sports Vikatan.
You’ll never hear him telling people how great he is or what he’s achieved. That is MS Dhoni’s X-factor. You look at Australia and go ’25 million people. How did they win the World Cup against us?’ MS Dhoni… he just finds a way to galvanise people together and does it in a way that is nothing about ego, not about self-promotion.”
Hayden delves into Dhoni’s legendary status, highlighting that despite retiring from international cricket in August 2020, Dhoni continued to showcase his leadership prowess by securing two additional IPL titles for CSK in 2021 and 2023, elevating the team’s trophy tally to five. With CSK failing to qualify for the IPL 2024 Playoffs, the future of the incomparable Dhoni remains uncertain. However, regardless of what lies ahead for CSK in the coming years, Dhoni will forever be remembered as their quintessential leader.
“Coming from a small village and finding a way to the hearts of India and hearts of Chennai in particular. Thala will remain the iconic leader of this franchise forever. But to hear him saying how great he is… you don’t even hear from MS Dhoni. And that’s his charm. Team before anyone and everyone loves that,” mentioned Hayden.
Amidst speculations surrounding Dhoni’s future with CSK, the franchise’s CEO, Kasi Viswanathan, provided the clearest response to date by stating that he is unsure about Dhoni’s plans. However, he expressed hope that Dhoni would return for one final swansong with the team next year.
