Former India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni recently turned 38 but continues to be the fastest in the team despite growing age. Dhoni continues to inspire generations with his batting prowess and also his calm and composed nature that makes him a totally different human all together. There is no controversy on the topic that he has been one of the finest finisher in limited overs format that this world has ever seen. But there are certain other things that a Dhoni fan must not have heard of. As the veteran of 350 ODIs nears retirement, we shed light on some of his unknown and unheard facts.
Born in Bihar
MS Dhoni was born on July 7, 1981 in the city of Ranchi that was initially in Bihar back then. It was only in 2000 that a new state of Jharkhand was formed from Bihar and Ranchi became the capital city.
Cricket was not his first love
During his school days Dhoni would look to play football and played as a goalkeeper in his school team. He later took to cricket on the advice of his games teacher in school. It is believed that Dhoni’s wicket-keeping skills came from football. He is also fond of playing badminton.
Initial days
Dhoni made his Ranji Trophy debut for Bihar in the 1999–2000 season as an eighteen-year-old. He was also rejected from the East Zone team playing Deodhar Trophy due to his unconventional style of playing.
He was a ticket collector at Kharagpur railway station from 2001-2003, in the time he also served for Bihar in domestic cricket.
International debut
To try new bunch of boys against a low-lying Bangladesh the selectors gave an opportunity to MS Dhoni for the Bangladesh tour in 2004. He was run out on the first ball on his ODI debut.
Helicopter shot mystery
Dhoni’s helicopter shot made alot of headlines back then and it is only because of his friend Santosh Lal that he learned this innovative shot. Santosh is no more with us as he died of acute pancreatitis in 2013.
Love for WWE
Dhoni is a big WWE buff. He is a big fan of Bret ‘The Hitman’ Hart and Hulk Hogan.
Roots from Uttarakhand
Dhoni was born in a Rajput family to Pan Singh and Devaki Devi. His paternal village Lvali is in the Lamgarha block of the Almora District of Uttarakhand.
An unbeatable record
On 31 October 2005 Dhoni scored 183 runs off just 145 balls against Sri Lanka in ODI at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur, which is the highest score made by any batsman in the second innings of an ODI. This is also the highest run scored by a wicket-keeper batsman.
Highest buy in IPL
In the inaugural season of IPL, he was the highest buy getting an amount of $1.5 million from Chennai Super Kings.
Mystery behind the long hairs
Dhoni was widely regarded for his long hairs during the initial days. He later revealed that it was inspired by Bollywood actor John Abraham’s look.
Automobile enthusiast
He has a big passion for bikes. Infact he purchased a second hand bike when he was not recognized but after making in into the Indian team his collection has ever grown. The cricketer owns X132 Hellcat, one of the most popular bikes. He also has around 23 other bikes.
Captaincy
In 2007, Sachin Tendulkar recommended MS Dhoni’s name for India’s skipper, given Dhoni’s calm and friendly nature with the rest of the team.
An Army man
On November 1, 2011, Dhoni was given the title of Lieutenant Colonel by the Indian Territorial Army. Dhoni is only the second Indian after Kapil Dev to receive an honorary rank. In fact, Dhoni was conferred with Padma Bhushan by President Kovind in April, 2018 and he marched to the stage like an army officer, dressed in the army outfit.
Taste for old melodies
Dhoni loves listening classic old hindi songs and is a big fan of Kishore Kumar.
Love for non-veg
Dhoni is a hardcore lover of chicken and he confirms this fact on his twitter bio.
Away from cricket
MSD has partnered with Telugu filmstar Akkineni Nagarjuna in buying a Supersport World Championship team and named it Mahi Racing Team India. He is also the owner of Chennaiyin FC, a team in Indian Super League.
Married his childhood sweetheart
Dhoni and Sakshi were childhood friends and their dads worked in company, MECON, in Ranchi. Sakshi’s family shifted to Dehradun but it was 2007 when destiny rolled up after almost a decade and they met miles away from their home, at the Taj Bengal in Kolkata, during Team India’s stay in November-December, 2007. Sakshi was a intern at the hotel. The two started dating in March 2008 and the affair was a well-kept secret. They married on July 4, 2018 and the wedding was planned in a manner that no one knew about the preparations, not even the media.
Highest tax-payer
Mahendra Singh Dhoni is the highest individual income tax-payer in Jharkhand and one of the highest in India. Dhoni paid an income tax worth Rs 20 crore in 2013-14 to emerge as the highest tax payer in individual category in Bihar and Jharkhand region for sixth consecutive year.
