Mahendra Singh Dhoni Birthday: Top-10 Interesting Facts That You Should Know

Mahi Birthday: Mahendra Singh Dhoni is celebrating his 39th birthday today and we take a look at some of the interesting facts from his personal and professional career.

A lot has been said and written about MS Dhoni, one of the greatest cricketers to have played the game. Articles have been written waxing lyrical of his knowledge and understanding of the game, he has been subject of multiple books, a movie and continues to dominate cricket discussions despite having not played competitive cricket for a year now.

Dhoni, the man widely acknowledged as the greatest Indian captain, wicketkeeper and finisher, turns 39 today. Here we take a look at the interesting facts from his personal and processional life.

Cricket not his first love

Yup, that’s right. Mahi, as he’s fondly called, played football and aspired to be a goalkeeper before switching to wicketkeeping. However, his love for football remains intact even today. He’s a co-owner for Indian Super League club Chennaiyin and is considered to be the best footballer among his Indian cricket teammates.

Favourite Food?

Dhoni loves butter chicken and also enjoys hot chocolate fudge.

Favourite Singer

Dhoni is a fan of classic Hindi songs and is a Kishore Kumar fan

Love for bikes

When not hitting sixes or effecting those lightning stumpings, Dhoni likes to unwind riding one of his several bikes. He has a garage full of motorcycles, a passion which dates back to his college days when he owned Rajdoot.

Honorary Rank

Dhoni is the second India cricketer after legendary allrounder Kapil Dev to have received an honorary rank with the Indian army. The Indian Territorial Army gave him the title of Lieutenant Colonel in 2011.

Helicopter Shot

In his own inimitable style, Dhoni popularised the helicopter shot which has now become synonymous with his name. He learnt the shot from his friend Santosh Lal who himself was a professional cricketer.

ICC Troika

Dhoni remains the only captain in the history to have won all major global ICC trophies. He first led India to victory at the inaugural ICC World T20 in 2007 and four years later, hit the winning six as they became the ODI World Champions for the second time. In 2013, he completed the troika by leading India to their maiden win in the ICC Champions Trophy too.

Highest ODI Score by a wicketkeeper

183* is Dhoni’s highest score in ODIs, made in 2005 against Sri Lanka in Jaipur. He struck 15 fours and five sixes while facing 145 deliveries in a successful chase of 299. This, to date, remains the highest score in ODIs by a specialist wicketkeeper-batsman.

Highest Test Score by an Indian wicketkeeper

During the first innings of the Chennai Test against Australia in February 2013, Dhoni scored his only Test double-century – 224 off 265 with 24 fours and six sixes. This remains the highest score by an Indian specialist wicketkeeper-batsman.

Most stumpings in international career

Dhoni has effected the highest number of stumpings in international cricket’s history. In 538 matches across formats, he has 195 stumpings followed by Kumar Sangakkara (139) at second and Romesh Kaluwitharana (101) at third.