File photo: Sourav Ganguly and MS Dhoni (TOI photo)
New Delhi: Long before becoming one of India’s most successful captains, MS Dhoni Already quietly tracked by Sourav Ganguly, who has now revealed how the wicketkeeper-batsman was fast-tracked through the system after impressing the then Indian captain.Speaking on Raj Shamani’s podcast, Ganguly said Dhoni’s rise was no accident. The former captain personally traveled to Jamshedpur to watch them during domestic cricket before the final selection call was made.Ganguly saw Dhoni before selectionGanguly revealed that he delayed the decision on Dhoni’s inclusion until he assessed him himself. “I had to meet him before making the final call,” he said. So the decision was put on hold for a few days.The visit convinced him. “We watch entire matches. When Dhoni played, I went to Jamshedpur to watch him. He didn’t even know,” Ganguly added, recalling how closely the management monitored the budding talent.The former captain also gave credit to the former selector. Saba Karim First to highlight Dhoni’s power hitting. “Saba Karim told me, ‘He hits a lot of sixes.’ So we picked him straight from there for India A. He played his first match for his team at the Wankhede Stadium. He scored a century and was hitting sixes on the roof,” said Ganguly.‘What’s good has to be fast-tracked’That India A innings removed any doubt. Ganguly said that the management believes that exceptional players should not be kept back in the system.“We had to take it. Anything good has to go fast. You can’t leave it. If you keep cooking it slowly from behind, it will die out,” Ganguly said, explaining the philosophy that shaped India’s turnaround during his captaincy.Dhoni’s ODI debut came in December 2004 against Bangladesh in Chittagong and ended in disappointment when he was run out for a wicket. But Ganguly remained convinced. Months later, he promoted Dhoni to no. 3 against Pakistan at Visakhapatnam. Dhoni declared himself on the international stage, scoring 148 off 123 balls.Ganguly said the rule was simple: “If you play with people above your level, your game will go up. If you play below, your game will go down.”This belief helped shape the careers of players like Yuvraj SinghHarbhajan Singh, Virender Sehwag – and in particular, Dhoni.
