5 instances when Dhoni rescued India in the first innings of an ODI

Champion of championsCometh the hour, cometh the man. A phrase attributed to few and deserved by fewer. The concept of a saviour - a metaphorical knight in shining armour - has often been dismissed as fantastical and dramatic, but in the case of Mahendra Singh Dhoni, it is all too real.Standing like a pillar in the middle order, the Indian captain has seen his fare share of batting collapses. In India’s defense, the batting collapse is India’s oldest friend in cricket. It was there when Tendulkar was in his prime, it was prevalent when Dhoni is in his twilight, and it will long continue to bog India down in the future.Taking the mantle of the Indian captain is akin to painting a target on your back. Every decision, every step, every moment in the field is scrutinized heavily, and one single misstep can mean your doom. But Dhoni doesn’t mind. He comes in, plays his shots, moves his field around, dodges the hard questions and keeps his cool.But the same can’t be said for his team. More often than not, India has been guilty of losing early wickets and making life tough for themselves. Be it reading the pitch wrongly, facing quality bowling or just poor batting, India has always found a way to get themselves into a terrible position early in the innings.These are the times when a saviour is supposed to arrive. In recent times, India’s saviour has always been MS Dhoni. Coming in at 150-5 or 100-5 or even sometimes at 50-5, the Indian captain has always seen to it that India crosses the finish line by playing out the full fifty overs.He has always taken it upon himself to steer India to a respectable score and ensure they don’t get bowled out without finishing their first innings quota. On the day when MS Dhoni saved India the blushes once again, we take a look at 5 times Dhoni saved India in the first innings of an ODI.

#1 95 off 130 balls vs West Indies, Kingston, 2009

This innings of 95 would be the first of many many such innings by MS Dhoni

Going in with a 1-0 lead in the series, India hoped to quell the West Indian team who were sure to give a rejuvenated performance. Winning the toss, MS Dhoni responded with a smile that he would bat first. That would be the last time Dhoni smiled on that day.

Ten balls later, India were 7/3 and Dhoni was in at the crease. It was like a magic trick. The No.5 batsman walks in after the toss and just two overs later, he was batting to save the team.

Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh kept the West Indians at bay for 62 balls, with the latter unleashing a flurry of boundaries. It seemed that India would actually come back into the match. Jerome Taylor continued his extended spell, and the floodgates opened once again.

Three wickets fell in the space of five overs, and 54/3 became 70/5. If anyone thought India would get a short reprieve, they were sorely mistaken. Two overs later, India sat a forlorn figure at 82/8. Dhoni watched sadly as RP Singh took guard, a good three hours earlier in the ground than he would have liked. Then, Dhoni went to work.

The first thing to do was increase the runs scored. Dhoni took the batting powerplay and took the entirety of the strike. India only scored 18 runs in it, but they were crucial runs as they passed the 100-run mark, which meant they wouldn’t get bowled out for double-figures.

RP Singh was given explicit instructions to do nothing but block, and he did the same. Dhoni, on the other hand, played painstakingly, rotating the strike and running the doubles hard. He curbed his natural attacking game, looking instead for the gaps and occasional boundary.

Once RP Singh got out in the 48th over, Dhoni tried to up the ante himself but was bowled on 95 trying to go for the big shot, coming up short of a well-deserved hundred.

Dhoni had come in to bat in the third over and stayed till the forty-eighth. He played 130 balls for his 95 and only got out trying to increase the score when he could have played for a century.

His rearguard effort ensured that India had a respectable total to defend, even though they ended up losing the game. It remains the second-most number of deliveries that Dhoni has played in an ODI match.

#2 69 off 103 balls vs England, The Oval, 2011

Dhoni’s innings was one of the best overseas by any batsman under immense pressure

Yet to beat England in what was a long tour, Dhoni hoped that the third match of the ODI series would provide some respite. Sadly, he was wrong. Under just a bit of overcast skies, India fell apart to England’s disciplined bowling, losing their first wicket in just the fourth ball of the innings.

India’s ex-saviour Rahul Dravid tried to steady the ship with Parthiv Patel, but both batsmen fell in successive overs. The collapse was underlined by Virat Kohli’s dismissal in the 11th over, and India was struggling at 25/4 when MS Dhoni walked in. He teamed up with long-time partner Suresh Raina to bat through the middle overs.

Apparently, Raina didn’t get that memo as he slogged six overs later, becoming India’s sixth wicket. Dhoni’s new partner was Ravindra Jadeja, and it was safe to say India were in deep trouble. But it was nothing Dhoni had never seen before, and he began the dirty work.

Joining hands with the under-fire Jadeja, Dhoni started the process of keeping the England bowlers at bay. He kept his trust in the younger player, giving him the strike instead of keeping it to himself.

He spent the time between the overs giving him confidence. Dhoni picked the gaps with precision, making sure India scored at least four runs an over. Dhoni preferred to let Jadeja attack, consent to scoring the singles and doubles himself.

Dhoni’s range of shots only came into full view after the 30 over mark was passed, and he hit Bopara for two boundaries in the over. But this was an isolated incident, as he went back to scoring in singles, evidently looking to bat till the end.

But it was not to be as he perished in the 45th over, not getting the ball on the middle of the bat. But the words of confidence he gave Jadeja was evident , as the latter kept his cool throughout the entire match, scoring 60 more runs in the last five overs.

Dhoni played 103 balls for his 69 runs, easily the most by any batsman. But his innings was an important one as it was one of those where Dhoni saved India from getting bowled out not just with his batting, but by also giving Jadeja the belief that he could bat under pressure as well.

#3 139* off 121 balls vs Australia, Mohali 2013

Dhoni’s effort ensured that India scored 300 losing 6 wickets inside 30 overs

India had played Australia under MS Dhoni in a bilateral series three times before 2013. They lost 4-2 the first two times and won 1-0 in the third in a rain affected series. So there was no doubt that this was a high-stakes series, and the battle was on. India was riding high on the back of chasing 350 runs in the second game, and they were put into bat.

The Australians were ready to take the match to the opposition, and they wasted no time. India was two wickets down in the seventh over, but Kohli and Raina held fort for seven overs. Then India lost two wickets in two balls, and the pressure was back on. Even before Dhoni faced his first ball, he slipped and sprained his ankle. But he battled on.

Dhoni and Kohli faced the Australians for 17 overs until the latter got out. Ravindra Jadeja fell two overs later, and India were placed precariously at 154-6. Playing with a sore ankle, MS Dhoni was the key.

With only Ashwin for company, the Indian captain batted through the middle overs, not going for the big shots until the slog overs. His full repertoire was back in the 41st over as he hit Xavier Doherty for a six and a four.

Ashwin gave him good company, scoring boundaries of his own. Mitchell Johnson and Clint Mckay tried their best to bounce and york him out, but Dhoni remained supreme.

At the end of 47 overs, India was 256/7, still miles away from a good score to test the Australians. Dhoni was on 94 off 105. The time had come for the defender to evolve into the finisher. Faulkner was the first casualty - consecutive fours off his over led Dhoni to his second ODI century against Australia. Watson was next as he went one better than Faulkner and conceded a six.

The best was reserved for Faulkner yet again as Dhoni took two sixes and two fours off him in the last over. India had scored 47 runs in the last three overs, and Dhoni had scored 45 of them. Dhoni had proved that not only could he shepherd India to a good total, he could also pull out the big shots in the end.

#4 113* off 125 balls vs Pakistan, Chennai 2012

Dhoni proved that he could bat with the tail and still be aggressive

India was playing Pakistan in a bilateral series for the first time in five years, and the stakes were as high as it could be. India had come back strongly in the T20 series to tie it 1-1, and fans were hoping for a similar performance. 58 balls later, their hopes were dashed to a pulp.

Pakistan bowled beautifully, making the ball move in the air and off the pitch, leaving the Indians in a tangle. Junaid Khan was the destroyer in chief, and his figures of 4-12 left India at 29/5.

For any Indian fan, being at 29/5 and being at 29/5 against Pakistan are two entirely different things. More than pride was at stake. Everybody looked beseechingly at Dhoni. He sighed and got to work.

He took solace from the fact that his partner was Suresh Raina, someone he batted with a lot, both in the national side and in the IPL. Both batsmen understood each other well, and this was a plus.

What followed was one of the most watchful innings in any ODI. Runs came at a virtually non-existent rate as India inched to 50 runs in the 14th over. Dhoni played the waiting game, allowing the ball to reach him then play on the rise.

Raina gave him good support, scoring when he could. They batted together for 24 overs before Raina was bowled. India was at 102-6, and Dhoni’s dismissal would have ensured that India did not pass 120.

The biggest problem was that there only 16 overs left, and India had only just passed 100. They needed another 120 at least, with the last recognized batting pair at the crease. There was nothing Dhoni could do, but push Ashwin for the singles and the doubles.

The scoring rate picked up after the 35th over as Dhoni hit a couple of boundaries. But the team score was still below 150. The first six of the match came in the 40th over, courtesy Dhoni himself.

He was convinced that India shouldn’t lose another wicket and batted with that mindset. With India nudging along, nobody noticed that Dhoni had passed his 50 after coming in at the tenth over.

The true assault began only in the 49th over, with Dhoni slamming the towering Mohammed Irfan for 17 runs, reaching his century in the process. Another four off the last over took India to 227/6, they had scored 125 runs in the last 16 overs, Dhoni scoring 90 of those.

To put the match in perspective, India lost their five wickets for 29, and then two for 198. That was the difference Dhoni made. India went on to lose the match, but Dhoni reinstated himself as India’s best performer in testing times.

#5 92* off 86 balls vs South Africa, Indore, 2015

Dhoni’s terrific innings was the best answer he could give his critics

The best are those who do not fall to criticism, but rise from it. After India’s narrow loss to South Africa in the first ODI, critics and fans were clamouring for MS Dhoni’s immediate axing from the team, or at the very least taking him off the captaincy.

But Dhoni stonewalled them all, preferring to answer them with the bat - and he did. India’s opening woes continued as Rohit Sharma went in the second over of the game. A tiny period of resurgence arrived in the form of Rahane and Dhawan, but it was quickly extinguished.

Kohli was run out unfortunately, and Raina came and went. Axar Patel tried to rotate the strike, but was trapped LBW. India were at 124-6, and staring at a below-150 score. The critics were baying for blood, and Dhoni was at the crease.

With Bhuvaneshwar Kumar for company, Dhoni set about - for the umpteenth time - to rebuild the innings. Steyn and Morkel were brought back on, and they tackled Dhoni with their deliveries on the ribs.

He was cramped for space, but still managed to take three runs every over. His first six came after 41 balls, and India were 165/7 in 40 overs. The last 10 overs would be the key and Dhoni was determined to bat it out. He kept moving the scoring rate along, with boundaries every other over, but also with crucial singles in between.

Harbhajan Singh gave him good company as India went past 200 with more than six overs to go. India looked good to pass 250 easily, but all the plans were destroyed as both Harbhajan and Umesh Yadav were dismissed in the same over and India were 9 down.

With this, Dhoni decided that enough was enough. He took matters entirely into his own hands and hogged the strike. He made sure he batted at least 5 balls and over and peppered the boundaries frequently.

The score inched on, but Dhoni did not take risks. Backed by the vocal crowd, he put all his experience into play as he made good use of the crease to go back and loft the ball over the infield. The bouncer strategy didn’t work either, as Dhoni pulled Steyn for four.

The fact that Dhoni didn’t rotate the strike proved a tad counter-productive at the end, but Dhoni assuaged all doubts by hitting the last ball for a six - the Dhoni trademark.

Dhoni finished on 92* off 86, scoring the last 50 runs in just 36 balls. His single-minded determination to keep the strike ensured he didn’t get his century, but more crucially, enabled India to bat 50 full overs. After the disappointing loss in the first game, Dhoni took it upon himself to lead India out of trouble, and he did exactly that.

Adding to his brilliant knock, Dhoni also took a brilliant diving catch to dismiss David Miller, in addition to two more captains and a stumping. Inspired by their captain’s confidence, India put in a power-packed performance and managed to defeat the South Africans.

In a single innings, Dhoni had levelled the innings and answered his critics, asserting his place as India’s saviour.