A clinical destroyer

Last World Cup, when India were busy making their way to the final, a certain Mahendra Singh Dhoni was busy following them keenly on his television set in Ranchi.

Last World Cup, when India were busy making their way to the final, a certain Mahendra Singh Dhoni was busy following them keenly on his television set in Ranchi. This time, he8217;ll have his family and friends in the Jharkand capital and billions of his fans across the country watching him with the same intent.

Dhoni liked everything that went all the way to the ropes. The fours and sixes, that8217;s how he always saw his own game. Wicket-keeping8212;he makes no bones about it 8212;came to him by accident. All of this, nevertheless, has made Dhoni one of India8217;s most valuable player over the last year and a half.

He8217;s already played 66 ODIs, has 1,958 runs to show for it with a strike rate of 98.47. If that is already known, then Dhoni has something more to himself that hasn8217;t caught the public imagination yet. At Nos. 6 and 7 8212; he8217;s batted in those positions in 35 matches 8212; Dhoni averages 48, the best in comparison to the current lot. In India8217;s run-chases, he has been the most efficient of middle-order run-getters with an average of 58 in 27 outings and 11 times unbeaten. To top it all, Dhoni8217;s batting played a crucial role in nine of India8217;s string of 14 successful chases in 2005-06.

That apart, he8217;s improved by leaps and bounds in his 8217;keeping, standing up and close to spinners and having already taken 61 catches. The 25-year-old has been there and done that but is about to get his first taste of the World Cup. He has already proved what a clinical destroyer he can be and the fact that he8217;s the one to count on when the going gets tough.

With time, he8217;s also got a good measure of his own approach towards the game, as words like 8220;team requirement8217;8217; and 8220;according to the situation8217;8217; keep popping up from his mouth. He says he knows better how to pace his innings now than what had been the case when he started. The last tour of the West Indies didn8217;t bring much success for the belligerent cricketer but the World Cup, he insists, will be a different ball game altogether.