MS Dhoni-- A Mediocre Test Captain at Best

Posted by : Unknown Wednesday 31 December 2014

Mahendra Singh Dhoni announced his immediate retirement from Test Cricket quietly after the drawn test against Australia. It was indeed a Practical End to a Practical man's Test Career. A man who carried on with his business quietly, never saying anything, letting the World talk aimlessly. Dhoni grew as a player, as a man when he was given the captaincy of the test outfit. The level of Calmness, Composure & Maturity shown by him was untouchable. This brought an end to a glorious test career spanning almost a decade.

For some, He was a Legend, for others He was just an ordinary guy who got Lucky more often than not. For me, He was a mix of both. While his Captaincy performances in ODIs & T20s have been exemplary, his test record does not indicate the truth behind it.

Let us first go through some of his Highs & Lows as a Test Captain:-

Highs

India achieved number 1 Test ranking for 18 months starting from December 2009.
Captained in 60 of the 90 tests he played for India.
Had a winning percentage of 45%.
Crossed Saurav Ganguly's record of 21 Test wins to become India's most successful captain.
Won home series against Australia in 2008, England in 2008-09, Sri Lanka in 2009-10, Australia and New Zealand in 2010-11, and the West Indies in 2011-12 and 2013-14 respectively.
Whitewashed Australia 4-0 in Border Gavaskar Trophy in 2013 played at Home.
Defeated New Zealand 1-0 in New Zealand.
Dominated in Home Tests.
Built the careers of many young players even if it meant compromising some Legends.

Lows

India won only 4 out of 25 tests outside sub-continent under MS Dhoni.
Whitewashed 4-0 by England in 2011 in England.
Whitewashed 4-0 by Australia in 2011-12 in Australia.
Lost 1-2 to England in 2012 after gaining a lead of 1-0 in Home series.
Lost 1-3 to England in 2014 after gaining a lead of 1-0.
Criticized for too much defensive captaincy in Tests.
Never scored a Hundred outside Asia. Failed to inspire team to victory overseas unlike Ganguly.
8 Consecutive Test Losses.
One more away Loss would have held him at par with Stephen Fleming for most number of away test losses as Captain.

All these points I made are only pertaining to Test Cricket. His biggest achievement remains Leading India to Number 1 Test Ranking built on a series of home dominance and performances by the Golden Generation & himself. Thus, making him a Mediocre Test Captain at best. MS Dhoni is a perfect example of "Zero to Hero", "Fortune favors the Brave" & "An ordinary man rising through the Ranks to Lead his Country to Glory".

Regardless of the stats, Dhoni will be remembered for many years to come & it will be very challenging for Captains of the coming generations to surpass his achievements.

We wish him the Best for Indian Team's title defense in the World Cup 2015 hoping that he will once again provide some moments of Joy for Indian fans, after all changing formats does wonder for him! ;)