MS Dhoni gives a sneak peek into his captaincy approach

MS Dhoni gives a sneak peek into his captaincy approach

Dhoni shared his philosophies as a leader of the national team on his 37th birthday.

By Salman Anjum - 09 Jul, 2018

MS Dhoni | Getty

MS Dhoni’s achievement as a captain is surreal, to say the least. Coming from the small town of Jharkhand, Dhoni hasn’t only done wonders for Indian cricket but for the game globally.

He is the only captain in the history of cricket to have won all the three ICC trophies – 2007 World T20, 2011 Cricket World Cup and 2013 Champions Trophy. Dhoni has also led India to the pinnacle in Test cricket while he has captained Chennai Super Kings to three IPL titles and two Champions League trophies.  

Dhoni celebrated his 37th birthday on Saturday (July 7) and shared his philosophies as a leader of the national team.

“The biggest learning during my tenure as a captain was, that a lot of time, I used to think that this is common sense. But no, there is nothing called common sense. You think, ‘Oh, I don’t need to say’ or like ‘Yeh bataneke cheez nehi hai’, but in a team environment, you need to say,”Dhoni told Star Sports in an interview telecast on his 37th birthday.

He highlighted how all the players react differently in match situations and when a captain must step in.

“There will be a few who are intelligent and they will be like ‘Areh yeh kya bol raha hai, yehzaroorat nahi hai’ (Why is he telling this, we know this). But it’s not for them. They can figure things out. It is for the person who does not understand. But, at the same time, it is very bad to address it to one person, because then he will know that ‘accha yeh toh mujhe hi bol rahahai’ (Okay he has singled me out),” MS remarked.

Dhoni’s simple approach has often reaped reward for the team.

“We try to spend time in an environment where you feel very comfortable. You need to break that ice, unless he gives me hisfeedback, unless he talks to me I won’t really know what is going around in his mind. For me to understand the individual I need to spend time with him. Unless you know the individual it’s very difficult to advise that individual as to what he needs to do. And also the fact that you get to get inside his mind because everybody is different,” he asserted.

Dhoni, who is currently on a tour of England with India’s limited-overs team, also feels it is hard to explain to players about their exclusions from the playing XI.

“I personally felt that in a team environment, the biggest problem was answering questions like ‘Dhoni, what is the reason for which I’m not playing the matches. They will then add on ‘I am asking you a question and I don’t want an answer’.’’ He stated.

Whenever Dhoni’s team clinch a trophy, he disappears in the background after receiving the trophy.

When asked about this gesture, Dhoni said: “Well, don’t you think, it is unfair that you play a team sport where the captain goes and receives the trophy? It’s like an over exposure. Let’s say that you already have anover exposure of like 15 seconds and after that I don’t really think that you are needed to be there. Of course, we all like the celebration and you want to be part of it. But it’s not like that you have to be with the trophy.”

“That’s why, in a team environment, we try to make it as simple as possible. And as I said, 15 seconds of over exposure has already happened, so no point clinging onto the trophy. Also, maybe if you don’t spend enough time with the trophy, you get a chance or you want to win another one so that you get another of those 15 seconds,” he concluded.

By Salman Anjum - 09 Jul, 2018