"He has been unfortunate in the past" - When MS Dhoni lauded Gautam Gambhir during a series against Pakistan in 2007

Former India captain MS Dhoni and opener Gautam Gambhir played crucial roles in helping the Men in Blue lift the 2007 T20 World Cup and 2011 World Cup titles. While Dhoni led the Men in Blue to glory, Gambhir played a crucial role with the bat, scoring 75 and 97 against Pakistan and Sri Lanka in the summit clashes, respectively.

Following his match-winning knock against the Men in Green, Dhoni also backed Gambhir in ODIs. The left-hander impressed with the bat in the 50-over format after managing just 12, 4*, 7, and 6 runs in his last four innings in 2007, respectively. Gambhir scored 44, which proved pivotal as India beat Pakistan by five wickets in the first of the five-match ODI series, earning praise from skipper Dhoni.

Dhoni said (via ESPNcricinfo):

“He has done consistently well at this level. He has been unfortunate in the past as some others have been given preference over him. [His longest run] in the team was only six matches in a row and he was Man of the Match in quite a few games.”

“I wanted to give him a few more matches before resting him and giving opportunities to others. And the way he played today he deserves his place in the side. He batted quite superbly," he added.

Gautam Gambhir followed his 44 with 57 runs in the second ODI against Pakistan.

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“Gautam batted brilliantly” – When MS Dhoni lauded Gautam Gambhir after the 2011 World Cup final

MS Dhoni lauded Gautam Gambhir for his heroics in the 2011 World Cup final against Sri Lanka as India lifted the trophy after 28 years. Following his 109-run partnership with Gambhir for the fourth wicket, he said (via ICC):

“Virat and Gautam batted brilliantly; lots of singles. Then with the help of bit of dew, we put pressure on the spinners. I would have liked Gautam to go on and get that big hundred."

Gambhir, who scored 97 off 122 balls against Lanka, is amongst 13 batters, who have scored over 5,000 runs for the Men in Blue in ODIs. Overall, he amassed 10,324 runs in 242 matches for India across formats.