Former Indian captain MS Dhoni turned 45, receiving birthday wishes from all over the world. Notably, the official FIFA World Cup Instagram account posted a tribute, calling him 'Thala for a reason' in a post featuring Messi, Mbappe and Haaland.
Former Indian cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni turned 45 on Tuesday, with fans and sporting personalities from across the world extending birthday wishes to the legendary wicketkeeper-batter.
The celebrations also reached the global football stage, as the official FIFA World Cup 2026 Instagram account joined in to honour Dhoni with a special birthday shout-out. FIFA World Cup shared a picture featuring football stars Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland, all of whom have scored seven goals in the ongoing tournament. The post carried the caption, "7 Goals. Thala for a reason. Happy Thala Day," paying tribute to Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his iconic No. 7 jersey. View this post on Instagram A post shared by FIFA World Cup (@fifaworldcup)
Dhoni's Illustrious International Career
MS Dhoni retired from international cricket in 2020 and continues to represent the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the Indian Premier League (IPL). With 17,266 international runs, 829 dismissals and 538 matches across formats for India, Dhoni is widely respected. Apart from his sharp wicket-keeping skills, Dhoni pushed the envelope, contributing valuable runs. He formed a formidable middle-order with Yuvraj Singh and Suresh Raina.
ODI Dominance
Dhoni's strongest format is the ODIs. In 350 ODIs, he scored 10,773 runs at an average of 50.57. He scored 10 centuries and 73 fifties for India, with the best score of 183*. He is India's sixth-highest scorer in ODIs (with Sachin Tendulkar at the top with 18,426 runs). The fact that he managed to score 10,000-plus runs at an average of over 50 while coming down the order makes his statistics even more astonishing. He led India in 200 ODI matches, winning 110, losing 74. Five games were tied, while 11 failed to produce a result.He has a winning percentage of 55. Dhoni has won the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 and ICC Champions Trophy 2013 for India as a skipper.
T20I Success
Dhoni, known as Chennai Super Kings' "Thala" (leader), played 98 T20Is for India, scoring 1,617 runs at an average of 37.60, at a strike rate of 126.13. He has two half-centuries in the format, with the best score of 56. He was the winning captain of India's ICC T20 WC 2007 winning team.'Mahi' led India in 72 T20Is, winning 41, losing 28, one being tied, and two failing to produce results. His win percentage is 56.94.
Test Cricket Leadership
Coming to his long-format career, Dhoni played 90 matches, scoring 4,876 runs at an average of 38.09. He scored six centuries and 33 half-centuries, with the best score of 224. He is the 14th-highest scorer for India in Tests.As a captain, he led India in 60 Test matches, out of which they won 27 matches, lost 18 and drew 15. With a win percentage of 45.00, he is one of India's most successful skippers across all eras. He led Team India to the number one ranking in the ICC Test Rankings.He is also the only Indian skipper to whitewash Australia in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, doing so in the 2010-11 and 2012-13 series.
IPL and Franchise Legend
Dhoni is just as reputable in franchise cricket, being the sixth-highest run-getter in IPL history, with 5,439 runs in 278 matches at an average of 38.30, including 24 fifties, at a strike rate of over 137. He has secured five IPL titles and two Champions League T20 titles with CSK, making the franchise one of the most popular entities in the sporting world, largely on the basis of his own brand and name.
Crowds follow and different fan clubs chant 'Dhoni' 'Dhoni' in unison when the batting legend makes even as much as an appearance inside his dressing room, gearing up for a possible chance at batting. (ANI)
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