“He was sitting in shorts because he knew he would bat at No.7”, Sourav Ganguly recalled the incident when he asked MS Dhoni to bat at number 3

MS Dhoni’s first ODI century scored against Pakistan in Visakhapatnam, made him famous. For the first time, Dhoni’s aggressive side was on full display for the whole world to see. India scored 356 runs in their innings because of a masterful performance by Mahendra Singh Dhoni, which was much over the average for innings in 2004.

Dhoni hit 15 fours and 4 sixes on his way to 148 (123). He absolutely destroyed the Pakistani bowlers and hasn’t looked back since. It’s intriguing that India’s captain at the time, Sourav Ganguly, made the risky decision to bat Dhoni in the top spot of the order against Sri Lanka.

Ganguly was well-known for taking chances on young people and giving them a chance to prove themselves. Former Indian batsman Virender Sehwag has publicly acknowledged that Ganguly was the one who gave him the opportunity to open the batting for India in international competition. Sehwag had previously batted in the middle of the order, but Ganguly moved him up so that he could reach his full potential.

Ganguly had told Gaurav Kapoor on ‘Breakfast with Champions’ how much he wanted to turn Dhoni into a big player. Dhoni’s status on the squad came under criticism after the club’s disappointing start to the season. Since Ganguly saw Dhoni’s potential, he promoted him.

What did Sourav Ganguly say about MS Dhoni?

Intriguingly, Ganguly let Dhoni bat at number three so that he could show his worth. Dhoni was wearing shorts, as Ganguly said as he wasn’t since he didn’t know it till the coin toss. Dhoni, in retrospect, was vindicated in his choice.

“When Dhoni came into the side in 2004, he played at No. 7 in the first two matches. We went to Vizag [vs Pakistan]. I was watching the news and wondering how could make a player out of Dhoni. He had great potential,” Sourav Ganguly had said on the show.

“The next day in the morning, we did our warm-ups, did the toss, won it and decided to bat. While coming back I decided I will send him up the order. We’ll see what the result is. He was sitting in shorts because he knew he would bat at No.7. I told him to go up at No. 3,” he added.

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