"That's something weaker persons do" - When MS Dhoni opened up on the importance of self-belief

Former India captain MS Dhoni has always been viewed as a cricketer with immense self-belief. This attribute allowed him to take matches into the last over and win it for India from tricky situations. Often experts wondered why the white-ball batting legend took the game so deep when it could have been won earlier. But Dhoni, of course, had his inimitable style.

Back in January 2013, the former India captain reflected on the ups and downs of his international career and shared his views on the importance of self-belief and how he tackles criticism. Speaking to the media ahead of an ODI against England, he said (as quoted by NDTV.com):

"I never question my ability. That's something weaker persons do - before others question you as an individual, you start questioning yourself. Self-belief is very important. And in a team sport, it's important that everybody keeps believing in themselves."

Asked about his views on criticism, which India players get a lot of when they do not perform well, the stumper had commented:

"It is not something that's new to us. As Indian cricketers, you know you are supposed to do well. The moment you don't do well - as an individual or as a team - you know you'll get a lot of criticism. But it's the same when you do well, where you get a lot of appreciation."

Dhoni is regarded as one of the finest white-ball captains to have ever played the game. He is the only leader to have won all three ICC limited-overs titles. As a batter, the Ranchi-born cricketer, amassed 10,773 runs in 350 ODIs, averaging 50.57, with 10 hundreds and 73 fifties.

---

MS Dhoni fans can watch him in action in IPL 2025

While the former India captain retired from international cricket in 2020, he continues to entertain fans with his appearances in the Indian Premier League (IPL). There was some uncertainty over his availability for the 2025 season ahead of the retention deadline.

In great news for Dhoni fans, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) retained him as an uncapped Indian player for ₹4 crore. The move was made possible as the BCCI brought back a rule as per which any Indian player who hasn't played international cricket for five years and does not have a central contract would be considered as an uncapped cricketer.