The talk around who comes closest to MS Dhoni has taken an interesting turn, and this time, the answer is not Virat Kohli. Former India and CSK pacer Sudeep Tyagi has named Rohit Sharma as the player who reminds him most of MS Dhoni, mainly because of one rare and powerful quality.
MS Dhoni’s golden captaincy era and trophy cabinet
Recently, Tyagi has showered rich praise on the legendary Indian wicketkeeper-batter for his charismatic captaincy, under which the country won all the ICC titles. This included the 2007 T20 World Cup, 2011 World Cup, 2013 Champions Trophy, and multiple ICC Test Championship maces.
Dhoni also led the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) to five IPL titles. He took Indian cricket to the next level with his calm composure under pressure, strategic brilliance, and intuitive decision-making. He also transformed Kohli into one of the best captains the game has ever seen.
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Decision-making that set Dhoni apart
Hailing the former Indian captain’s leadership, Tyagi mentioned that it was his decision-making that truly made Dhoni different from everyone else. The former pacer explained that Dhoni always knew what to do, when to do it, and how fast to do it, especially when the match was on the line.
Tyagi felt Dhoni had a special ability to stay calm when everything was chaotic. In fast formats like T20 cricket, where situations change in seconds, Dhoni could think clearly and act quickly. That balance of calm mind and fast thinking is what made him such a successful captain.
‘It’s a God’s gift’
Sudeep Tyagi told CricketAddictor, “Decision maker, I think his decision, like I told you, right time, right decision, what decision to take according to the situation, he has a different art. You can say it’s a God’s gift. And the decision he takes, 90% of the time, it is successful.”
He continued, “It’s not always successful, but whatever I have seen, whenever I have played with him, the decisions he takes at the crucial moment—that is his biggest strength. That’s why he has won so many World Cups and IPL trophies. What you have to do at the crucial moment and how fast you have to do it—that is very important. As they say in cricket, T20 is a fast game. You have to think fast about what to do, what to do. So, that is what makes him a different captain.”
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Why Rohit Sharma reminds Sudeep Tyagi of MS Dhoni
Furthermore, Tyagi has noted that he has not seen this level of decision-making in any other captain, but Rohit’s calm nature and smart choices during tight moments remind him of Dhoni, even if the legendary wicketkeeper-batter still stands in a league of his own.
He added, “And I think that quality, I haven’t seen it in any other captain yet. I saw a little bit in Rohit that he has those qualities. But what makes him the best is his decision-making.” Notably, Rohit also won ICC Champions Trophy in 2025 and T20 World Cup in 2024 as captain.
MS Dhoni’s bold Ravichandran Ashwin call
Well, Tyagi recalled Dhoni’s bold move to ask Ravichandran Ashwin to bowl with the new ball in T20 cricket, saying the former Indian captain was never afraid to try something different if he believed it could work.
He signed off by saying, “The biggest thing—you must have seen that in T20—for the first time, Mahi Bhai used spinner Ashwin with the new ball. It was shocking for us and for the world as well that a spinner was bowling with the new ball; it had happened before, but it was a rare case.”
