Former Indian fast bowler S. Sreesanth praised MS Dhoni for his humble demeanor, highlighting the fact that despite playing a pivotal role in the success of renowned cricketers like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, Dhoni never sought credit for his contributions.
Sreesanth was a part of the Indian squads that achieved victory in both the 2007 [T20] and 2011 [ODI] World Cups under the captaincy of Dhoni. Additionally, Dhoni played a vital role in nurturing the talents of other players like Suresh Raina and Ravichandran Ashwin during their initial phases in international cricket.
Rohit openly acknowledges Dhoni for suggesting that he bat at the top of the order in ODIs, which he believes has been a pivotal move for his career. Sreesanth mentioned in an interview that Dhoni would never boast about it.
“MS Dhoni would never say he made Rohit Sharma’s career. I know him really well. We can say that because Dhoni gave him an opportunity. Why did he give him an opportunity? Because he knew that at that number he will do well. Be it Raina, Virat or Ashwin for that matter,”
“Mahi bhai has played a big role even in my career, everybody’s career. Nobody can change that. But why did he do that? Because he knew that if he supports those players, they will go to the next level. Maybe he gave the support to us that he himself didn’t get,”
S Sreesanth
After Dhoni instructed him to begin the batting with Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit’s ODI career took off. The 36-year-old opener has scored 8082 runs at an average of 55.35 in 165 matches, including 28 hundreds.
Sreesanth Highlights Rohit’s Success as a Captain: He Has Lifted the Best Franchise Trophy Many Times
While Rohit has had a mixed record as India’s full-time captain since taking over, Sreesanth sees no grounds for a discussion. He emphasized that the batter has guided the Mumbai Indians (MI) to five Indian Premier League (IPL) championships.
“Regarding captaincy, I wouldn’t say much because he has won the best franchise tournament many times. He will keep winning. That’s the kind of team and management that they have. As a person, he is one of the best to hang around,”
S Sreesanth
India reached the 2022 T20 World Cup semi-finals under Rohit, but were defeated by England by 10 wickets. They also advanced to the final of the 2023 World Test Championship (WTC), but were defeated by Australia by 209 runs.