How MS Dhoni, who parted ways with schoolmate Sakshi, met again to blossom their love story?

 Former Indian captain MS Dhoni has announced his retirement from international cricket, while he continues to represent Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League. He has been married to Sakshi since 2010, as the couple has a five-year-old daughter, Ziva.

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New Delhi, First Published Oct 25, 2020, 2:29 PM IST | Last Updated Oct 25, 2020, 2:58 PM IST

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MS Dhoni, the legendary Indian player, is truly a family man and refrains from making his personal life public. Even though fans believe that the movie “MS Dhoni- The Untold Story” has unveiled much, there is still so much to tell about Dhoni’s life. One such incident of his is the childhood connection with Sakshi, who took to different ways in their younger days and finally tied knots with each other. Here are some revelations of MS Dhoni and Sakshi’s age-old intimacy.

The Childhood bond
Despite the fact that Dhoni and Sakshi knew each other from childhood and went to the same school in Ranchi, yet no love angle brewed between the two during their early teenage days. By chance, Dhoni and Sakshi's father happened to work in the same company, MECON, in Ranchi. Since then, the two families shared a cordial relationship. However, owing to circumstances then, Sakshi's family had to shift to Dehradun, where her grandfather was already staying. The two then lost the touch, as they were quite distant from each other. 

Surprise meet after a decade
While both parted ways, destiny had its own plans. By chance, the duo met after ten years in Kolkata. The incidental meeting happened in Taj Bengal, during Team India's stay in November-December 2007, when India was playing against Pakistan at the Eden Gardens.

Following the career commitments, Sakshi Rawat was an intern working at Taj Bengal, who was introduced to Dhoni by his manager, Yudhajit Dutta. Dutta happened to be Sakshi’s acquaintance as well. Inadvertently, it was the last day of Sakshi’s internship at the swanky Taj Bengal and it was God's plan to bring Dhoni and Sakshi together. Moved by his childhood friend charm, Dhoni asked Dutta for her number and texted her.

Unable to digest the first approach from such a tall figure, she believed it was more of a prank that has been charted out. Unlike her expectations, she realized that it was the 'captain of the Indian team' himself. It was quite a task for Dhoni to make Sakshi agree to be friends with him, as was often teased as a "hopeless romantic" by her friends. 

Besides maintaining his performance on the field, it took a lot of wooing and flirting, which went on for two months, before he won Sakshi’s heart. Finally, the two started dating each other in March 2008. Sakshi even cherished the birthday bash of his fiancee that same year. Leaving his friends at the party, Dhoni personally dropped her lady love, Sakshi back at her relative's place.
 

Married solemnized
The affair was kept a secret for two long years and no media house had a bleak idea of their intimacy and their wedding. Unlike other personalities, who marry reputed celebrities, no one knew much about Sakshi Rawat before her marriage. Dressed up normally, she chose a red and green Sabyasachi lehenga and even the salesgirl could not foresee her special client.

Following the ring ceremony, that was held at Hotel Competant in Dehradun, on July 3, 2010, the couple undertook their wedding ceremony the very next day on Sunday, July 4, 2010, at Vishranti Resort, near Dehradun. The event saw the presence of Dhoni's friends from different fraternity.

Performance escalation
Sakshi certainly was the lady luck for Dhoni, as his performance improved after she entered his life. Dhoni too, focussed on his regime diligently and prioritized cricket first in his life. Committed to cricket, Dhoni captained two ICC World Cups for India, lifted the 2011 World Cup, and won the IPL as well.

Sakshi’s love and welcoming of Ziva
Sakshi’s love for Dhoni is quite evident from the fact that she has got her husband's nickname inked right below her left ear on her neck. ‘Mahi’, in Devanagari, has been beautifully en-carved on her neck. 

The couple was blessed with a baby girl in 2015, whom they named Ziva. While Dhoni was playing the 2015 ICC World Cup for India, he said that his meeting with his daughter can wait, as he is currently on national duty.