How MS Dhoni’s Captaincy Played A Pivotal Role In India Winning The ICC Champions Trophy 2013?

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Published - 15 May 2024, 12:29 IST

How MS Dhoni's Captaincy Played A Pivotal Role In India Winning The ICC Champions Trophy 2013? — MS Dhoni's captaincy for India in ICC Champions Trophy 2013

Former India captain MS Dhoni served the Indian team for nearly 15 years. He also played for Jharkhand and Bihar in the domestic circuit before entering the international stage. Dhoni is one of the most successful captains in cricket history. Thala Dhoni has won almost every trophy he has competed for in a career spanning 15 years. He is in the last phase of his career, playing for Chennai Super Kings in the IPL 2024 season. Captain cool MS Dhoni has earned many accolades from his hardcore fans, experts and critics throughout a glittering career where he featured in 90 Tests, 350 One-Day Internationals, and 98 T20 International matches for India. Talking about MS Dhoni total runs, the World Cup-winning Indian captain was hailed as the best Finisher in limited-overs cricket. There are countless memories of Dhoni finishing matches for India in close encounters. In this blog, we look at how MS Dhoni's captaincy played a pivotal role in India winning the ICC Champions Trophy 2013.

MS Dhoni-led India lifts ICC Champions Trophy amidst the IPL spot-fixing controversy

Captain Cool MS Dhoni is the second-most-popular Indian cricketer, behind only Sachin Tendulkar. He came from a cricketing backwater, the eastern Indian state of Jharkhand. He made it to the top, achieving success through his unique batting and wicketkeeping techniques and his unconventional approach to captaincy that ranged from conservative to unorthodox. Dhoni is one of the most loved and respected cricketers of all time. It is incredible that MS Dhoni is the only captain to win all three ICC events. He is also a five-time IPL-winning captain. Under Dhoni's leadership, India led the Test rankings for 18 months starting December 2009, won the T20 World Cup in 2007, the 50-over World Cup in 2011 and the ICC Champions Trophy in 2013. Talking about MS Dhoni total runs and MS Dhoni centuries, Dhoni became an instant darling of the crowds with ODI innings of 148 and 183 not out within a year of his debut. Here's how MS Dhoni's captaincy played a pivotal role in India winning the ICC Champions Trophy 2013.

India batting performance

Player	Mat	Inns	NO	Runs	BF	HS	Ave	SR	100	50	0	4s	6s
Shikhar Dhawan	5	5	1	363	358	114	90.75	101.39	2	1	0	35	4
Virat Kohli	5	5	2	176	184	58*	58.66	95.65	0	1	0	17	2
Dinesh Karthik	5	4	2	82	95	51*	41.00	86.31	0	1	0	10	1
Rohit Sharma	5	5	0	177	233	65	35.40	75.96	0	2	0	22	1
MS Dhoni	5	2	0	27	30	27	13.50	90.00	0	0	1	3	0
Suresh Raina	5	3	1	17	16	9	8.50	106.25	0	0	0	1	1
Ravichandran Ashwin	5	2	0	11	11	10	5.50	100.00	0	0	0	1	0
Ravindra Jadeja	5	2	2	80	54	47*	0.00	148.14	0	0	0	9	3

The pain of Indian cricket fans startled by the sensational IPL 2013 spot-fixing scandal was eased a bit after the MS Dhoni-led side won the ICC Champions Trophy 2013 in England. The Men In Blue were all over the cricket news, marking it a momentous occasion for fans and the Indian team. The ICC event took place in England, and India managed to defeat the host nation by a narrow margin of five runs in the tournament's final match. Indian captain MS Dhoni also became the only captain to have won all the ICC trophies, that is, the T20 World Cup in 2007, the ODI World Cup in 2011, and the ICC Champions Trophy in 2013.

India bowling performance

Player	Mat	Inns	Overs	Mdns	Runs	Wkts	BBI	Ave	Econ	SR	5	10	Ct	St
Ravindra Jadeja	5	5	41.0	5	154	12	5/36	12.83	3.75	20.5	1	0	2	0
Ishant Sharma	5	5	38.0	2	218	10	3/33	21.80	5.73	22.8	0	0	1	0
Ravichandran Ashwin	5	5	41.0	4	181	8	3/48	22.62	4.41	30.7	0	0	4	0
Bhuvneshwar Kumar	5	5	35.0	4	137	6	2/19	22.83	3.91	35.0	0	0	2	0
Umesh Yadav	5	5	35.4	2	198	4	2/75	49.50	5.55	53.5	0	0	0	0

Ishant Sharma's 18th over: A Topsy-turvy gamble that turned the game

When you think about MS Dhoni captaincy records, you cannot forget how Dhoni's decision made Team India win the ICC Champions Trophy 2013. Dhoni had a crucial role in winning the iconic final against England, and one significant decision changed the game in favour of India. Defending just 130 runs, Dhoni handed the ball to Ishant Sharma in the 18th over. Ishant had been expensive in the match and leaked 27 runs in his previous three overs, and questions were raised by experts about Dhoni's decision. However, Ishant Sharma dismissed Eoin Morgan and Ravi Bopara respectively, bringing England completely on the back foot. In the last over, Thala Dhoni shocked everyone by giving the ball to Ravichandran Ashwin, who managed to defend 6 runs off the last ball.