Top 10 finishes by MS Dhoni in ODI cricket

Indian captain MS Dhoni, without a shadow of a doubt, is the best finisher that the limited overs game has ever seen. Blessed with a range of strokes and a calm temperament, the reason for Dhoni’s greatness as a finisher is due to the fact that he never panics, at least that is the view from the outside, in a run-chase irrespective of the situation that might be confronting him.He backs himself to win his team the game from the most unlikeliest of scenarios, and, remarkably, seems to pull it off 9 out of 10 times, as well. There was a time when India were absolutely awful while chasing totals in ODI cricket, but those days are well and truly past now, largely due to the wicketkeeper-batsman’s arrival at the international stage.With Dhoni having been involved in a number of great ODI finishes for India, the task of picking just 10 is an extremely difficult one. With that being the case, I’ve decided to consider only those innings where he has scored a minimum of 40 and, thereby, helped India go on to win or tie the match.

#10 50* v Sri Lanka at Adelaide Oval, Australia (19 February 2008)

India, in their run chase of 238, were wobbling at 99/4 with MS Dhoni, once again, consigned to doing the rescue job. Dhoni, along with Yuvraj Singh, went about pulling things back for India with a solid 50-run partnership, but Yuvraj’s dismissal on 76 shortly after was a huge blow, leaving the ‘Men in Blue’ with another 81 runs to get with 5 wickets in hand.

Dhoni, however, remained calm, fully aware that he just needs to bat through the innings to see the Indians home. With a bit of support from Irfan Pathan towards the end, he did exactly that finishing on 50* from 68 balls to give India a 2-wicket win in the final over. This was one of those rare innings where Dhoni didn’t manage to hit even a single four or a six, but he wasn’t any less effective.

#9 91* v Bangladesh in Mirpur, Bangladesh (10 May 2007)

The Indian team had crashed out of the 2007 ICC World Cup at the group stages and was at one of its lowest ebbs. What triggered their early exit at the World Cup was their surprising defeat to Bangladesh in their very first match of the tournament. They would have, then, been keen for revenge during the 3-match one-day series in Bangladesh, which was taking place shortly after the mega event.

Revenge, though, would been farthest from their minds when they were tottering at 144/5 in their run chase of 251, in the first of those 3 matches and in danger of another embarrassing defeat at the hands of Bangladesh. But Dhoni, who had been promoted to No.3, struck a calm and composed 91* from 106 balls and took India to a 5-wicket victory with the support of Dinesh Karthik, thereby preventing another upset in a matter of two months.

#8 77* v Pakistan in Karachi, Pakistan (19 February 2006)

By the end of this match, the Pakistani bowlers would have been absolutely sick of watching Dhoni in action as he slaughtered them to all parts of the ground once again.

Going into the 5th and final match of the series, although India had already taken an unassailable 3-1 lead, they would have wanted to finish things off in style. And that they certainly did as Dhoni struck a breathtaking 77 off 56 balls, containing 6 fours and 4 sixes, to help India chase down a target of 287 with 3 overs to spare.

Although Yuvraj was unbeaten on 107 off 93 balls and claimed the Man-of-the-Match award, it was Dhoni who, with his dazzling strokeplay towards the end, completely demoralized the Pakistanis.

#7 58* v Sri Lanka at Adelaide Oval, Australia (14 February 2012)

There have been very few occasions with MS Dhoni being not out at the end of an unsuccessful Indian run-chase in ODI cricket. This was one of those few occasions as the team only managed a tie, but it was an enthralling finish with Dhoni in the thick of the action nonetheless.

Needing a moderate 237 for victory, India were 4/118 when Dhoni joined Gautam Gambhir in the middle. The two experienced batsmen put on a 50-run partnership and were looking well on course to take India to victory. Right on cue, the two were involved in a suicidal mix-up, which saw Gambhir walk back to the pavilion with still 59 more runs needed. A flurry of wickets at the other end followed, which meant that India needed 9 to win off the last over with 2 wickets in hand.

Getting 9 off 6 balls is never easy and especially when Malinga is running in to bowl. Unable to hit a boundary or six off the first 5 balls of the over, India now needed 4 to win off the final delivery, but, thankfully, Dhoni was on strike. He managed to miscue a full and wide delivery from Malinga over extra cover for 3 runs to finish on 58 off 69 balls and end the match in a tie.

#6 46* v West Indies at Gros Islet, St. Lucia (3 July 2009)

Chasing a D/L target of 195 from 27 overs against West Indies, India were 84/1 in 12 overs and needed another 111 runs from 14.5 overs at a challenging run-rate of 7.40. Dhoni promoted himself up the order to No.3 and provided a masterstroke in how to pace a run-chase in ODI cricket. Another rain delay meant that India’s target was revised to 159 runs from 22 overs.

Dhoni kept rotating the strike on a regular basis right from the start of his innings in an attempt to prevent the run-rate required from climbing too high. But some good West Indies death bowling and Rohit Sharma’s wicket towards the end led to the visitors needing 11 runs off the last over for victory. Yusuf Pathan took a single off the first ball of the over to give the strike to Dhoni.

Dhoni, then, duly struck a massive six and brought the equation down to 4 off 4, after which it was routine for the Indian captain. Dhoni’s 46 not out off 34 balls not only gave India a 6-wicket victory but also a 2-1 series win.

#5 72* v Pakistan in Lahore, Pakistan (13 February 2006)

This was perhaps the time when the balance of power between India and Pakistan started to shift firmly in India’s direction. Pakistan had dominated much of the 1990s, but that was no longer the case with the likes of Dhoni making their way into the Indian team.

Set a target of 289 from 50 overs, India seemed down and out at 5/190 when the then long-haired Dhoni joined Yuvraj at the crease. Needing 99 from the remaining 15 overs, Dhoni got going immediately and tilted the match in India’s way in next-to-no time. Putting on an unbeaten partnership of 102 in 13 overs with Yuvraj (79 from 87 deliveries), he finished not out on 72 off just 46 balls to give India a 2-1 series lead in the 5-match series.

#4 44* v Australia at Adelaide Oval, Australia (12 February 2012)

India should have perhaps won this Commonwealth Bank (CB) series game against Australia a lot more comfortably than they ended up doing; they needed just 92 runs from 95 deliveries when Gautam Gambhir was dismissed for 92. Be that as it may, Dhoni, who loves taking an ODI run-chase to the very last over, made sure that they got the job done at the end with a steady innings of 44 from 58 balls. While there is nothing remarkable about scoring 44 from 58 balls, what made this innings one of his exceptional was the fact that India needed 12 runs off 4 balls when Dhoni got back on strike in the final over.

He then struck a gigantic 112 metres six off the bowling of Clint McKay, who was clearly feeling the pressure of bowling to Dhoni. Needing 6 off 3, he played the situation to perfection and took India to victory with a couple of balls to spare at the end.

#3 45* v Sri Lanka at Port of Spain, Trinidad (11 July, 2013)

Dhoni had missed a few games due to an injury prior to this tri-series final in the Caribbean last year, and he showed how invaluable he is to the Indian team as he struck a magnificent 45* off 52 balls to win India the tri-series by one wicket.

Needing 202 for victory on a treacherous wicket, India were struggling at 139/4 when Dhoni came in to bat. The situation got worse shortly after with none of the other players being able to cope with the slow nature of the pitch, resulting in India being reduced to 9/182 and on the brink of defeat. But Dhoni, being the confident man that he is, left himself to get 15 runs off the last over, which was to be bowled by Shaminda Eranga. And the carnage that followed needed to be seen to be believed. After missing out on scoring off the first delivery of the over, Dhoni smashed the next 3 balls for 6, 4 and 6 respectively to hand India one of their most memorable ODI wins in recent times.

#2 183* v Sri Lanka in Jaipur, India (31 October, 2005)

Dhoni introduced himself to the cricketing world, as a player of reckoning, with his 183* against Sri Lanka in an ODI at Jaipur in 2005. Back in the day where chasing a score of around 300 was still considered pretty rare, Dhoni’s dazzling innings of 183 off 145 balls, flooded with 15 boundaries and 10 sixes, ensured India made light work of the target of 299 as they chased it with almost 4 overs to spare.

The then 25-year-old, who was promoted to No.3, walked out to bat with the scoreboard reading 7/1 after the loss of Sachin Tendulkar’s wicket and teed off right from the outset. You might see a pinch-hitter getting a quick-fire 50 or so, but it is very difficult to carry on in that fashion for an extended period. That wasn’t the case with Dhoni, however, as he never seemed to relent at any stage of his innings. The fact that the next highest score in the innings was Virender Sehwag’s 39 gives you a fair idea of the single-handed manner in which Dhoni took India to a crushing 6-wicket victory with almost 4 overs to spare.

#1 91* v Sri Lanka in Mumbai, India (2 April, 2011)

There is not a shred of doubt that Dhoni’s 91* in the 2011 ICC World Cup final is his greatest innings ever. In what was the biggest match of his international career, Dhoni bravely decided to promote himself above Yuvraj Singh, who was in brilliant form right through the tournament, and it paid off majestically as his 91* off just 79 deliveries helped India win their first ICC World Cup in 28 years.

Needing 275 from 50 overs for a victory, India were in a spot of bother at 114/3 when Dhoni strode out to the crease. He was in a patchy form before that final, scoring a mere 150 runs from 8 matches with a highest score of 34. If Dhoni’s move in the final had gone pear-shaped, he would have been pilloried from all quarters. But therein lays Dhoni’s greatness. He started slowly as he usually does, knowing well that Gambhir was in good touch at the other end. Once Gambhir was dismissed for 97, Dhoni decided to take the onus on himself to bat through till the end. And he did so in sparkling fashion. Him dispatching Kulasekara for a six to finish things off will be a memory that will be etched in every Indian fan’s mind for a long time to come.