This Champions Trophy has been about India embarking on a new road, about their exciting new opening pair, their electric fielding and accurate bowling. Above all, though, it has been about Dhoni's steely survival instincts and his impressive ability to insulate a young side from recent upheavals. It couldn't have been easy, since Dhoni was, for a while, himself a cause of public disenchantment.
Just a few days back, when the team departed for England, Dhoni's image as a bold, new-generation leader of Indian cricket appeared dented when he hemmed and hawed when queried on the spot-fixing scandal. When someone asked if he could assure the people of India that the Champions Trophy, at least, would be clean, he constantly adjusted his tie and wouldn't say a word. He wouldn't look anybody in the eye. He even forgot to mouth platitudes.
This was a far cry from the unflappable leader of men we were used to; the captain who started asserting himself and forged a new unit after a string of defeats put his position in doubt. The argument that the BCCI had gagged him couldn't convince fans, either.
Dhoni's reticence was perceived as the silence of the scared and confused.
Photographs of his wife in the company of small-time actor Vindu Dara Singh — another of those arrested — had been splashed across the front pages. Reports had emerged of Dhoni owing his captaincy to BCCI 'president-in-exile' N Srinivasan's largesse after the twin defeats in England and Australia. He had also been made a vice-president in Srinivasan's company. The last straw was the revelation that he had a stake in a player-management company which handled India players. The captain could defend neither himself nor his paymasters, and Indian cricket was the poorer for it.
The only bargaining chip Dhoni could muster under the circumstances was a strong performance from the team in England. Now, Dhoni stands on the cusp of achieving something no captain has ever done: leading his team to all three ICC limited-overs trophies, having already won the World T20 in 2007 and the World Cup in 2011.
The World T20 eluded Ricky Ponting, the man who came closest to bagging all three.
If India beat England on Sunday, Dhoni's status as statistically the most successful Indian captain will stand reinforced. Under him, India were the No. 1 Test side for 18 months and boast a 62.97% success rate in ODIs. No other Indian captain has a minimum success rate of 50% across all formats. His unique, seemingly unrefined but brutally effective batting skills have provided the finishing touches captains before him have lacked.
It's not just the fact that Dhoni has a batting average of 51.76% in winning causes in Tests and an unbelievable 74.27% in winning causes in ODIs — under him, India have learnt to win the big finals. In the limited-overs arena, at least, Dhoni's calm approach makes him the cleverest captain around.
Then, of course, there's the famed luck. In England, the team has responded well to the new rules. The Kookaburra hasn't swing as much. Shikhar Dhawan's spectacular success at this level defied all predictions. Rohit Sharma revelled in his new role. Ravindra Jadeja kept going from strength to strength.
Dhoni's unique ability to carry his players along, shut out distractions and live in the moment has been — and will continue to be — important ingredients in New India's success. So never mind the power games in the BCCI, Dhoni could yet be the last man standing.
DHONI'S CAPTAINCY RECORD
| Played | Won | Lost | Tied/NR/Drawn | Winning % | |
| ODIs | 139 | 81 | 47 | 11 | 62.97 |
| T20Is | 41 | 20 | 19 | 2 | 51.25 |
| Tests | 47 | 24 | 12 | 11 | 51.06 |
India have been ranked No. 1 in Tests and ODIs under his captaincy. Under his leadership, India have won the top prize in all formats — the No. 1 rank in Tests for 18 months commencing December 2009, World Cup 2011 and the World T20 in 2007.
Won the World Cup as well as the ICC World Twenty20. Only Indian captain to have won both ICC world tournaments.
Won the Commonwealth Bank series in Australia in 2007-08, defeating Australia 2-0. Won the Asia Cup, defeating Sri Lanka by 81 runs at Dambulla on June 24, 2010. His success % of 83.33 (five wins, one loss and a no-result game out of seven played) is the highest among the captains in the ICC Champions Trophy. Among the batsmen with 2000 runs or more in successful chases in ODIs, he is the only one to have averaged 90-plus — 2057 runs at an average of 97.95 in 71 matches. — Rajesh Kumar
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