West Indies great Michael Holding said former
India captain MS Dhoni looked like a “maverick” when he first started to play
One-day International (ODIs) for India with that “long flowing locks” of his.
Holding went a step further and said that he would destroy whatever came in front
of him and he “pretty much did that”. Dhoni, one of the most successful captains for India, announced his retirement from International cricket on August 15 in an Instagram
post.

“When Dhoni first started to play ODIs
for India that long flowing locks that we call it in the Caribbean, he looked
like a maverick. He looked like someone who came out there just to destroy
whatever comes in front of him and he pretty much did that,” news agency PTI quoted Holding
as saying.

“As he grew some grey around his temple
area then he had to tone it down a bit and he was lot more controlled with his
batting. Anyone watching MS Dhoni in the middle would know he was always in
control, unflappable, never ever he looked out of control,” he added.

Dhoni is the only captain to have won
all the ICC trophies – T20 World Cup, Champions Trophy and ICC World Cup.

Hailing his
big-hitting prowess, Holding said, “Throughout his career, he hit 229 sixes
(in ODIs). When you think of those numbers you must be thinking he must have
played for 40 years to have hit so many sixes and fours. But that is the nature
of the man”.

“What a captain he was, how
successful he was…When he was captaining, you never saw him get
excited,” said Holding, a member of the famous pace quartet of the West
Indies in the 1970s.

“If
things seemed to be slipping, he would call his players, have a chat calmly and
then they would go back to wherever they were and things would automatically
change, that was the kind of influence he had,” the former West Indies
cricketer remarked.

In 98 Tests, Dhoni scored 4,876 runs
with 256 catches and 38 stumpings, while amassing 10,773 runs with 321 catches
and 123 stumpings in 350 ODIs.

In T20Is, he
aggregated 1617 runs with 57 catches and 34 stumpings. He scored six centuries
in Tests and 10 in ODIs.

Holding said
it is “commendable” that Dhoni could score nearly 5000 Test runs and
do justice to his keeping job throughout his career.

“What a
career this man had, a fantastic one. This man made almost 5,000 Test runs and
remember, he’s not a pure batsman, he’s a wicketkeeper. Over such a long
career, to be able keep wickets and do such a fantastic job is
commendable,” said the 66-year-old.