8 Decisions by Sourav Ganguly and MS Dhoni that changed Indian cricket

4. Dhoni- Backing Rohit Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja after a series of initial failures

In the last point, we saw how Mahendra Singh Dhoni pulled off a masterstroke by slotting in Rohit Sharma at the top of the order in white-ball cricket.  But, would he have been in the team in 2013, let alone open, had MS not supported him to the hilt during the first five years of his career where his performances were mediocre at best.

Rohit averaged a measly 31.67 in his first 87 ODIs with the help of two centuries. He endured his worst year in International cricket in 2012 where he managed just 168 runs in 13 innings at an average of 12.92. 

Would any other captain had dropped him after such performances? Probably yes. But, as I said before the hallmark of a truly great leader is that he invests in his players. Which is exactly what Dhoni did with Rohit, and the results are for everyone to see.

Another player that Dhoni backed to the core is Ravindra Jadeja. Jadeja debuted way back in 2009 and wasn’t even half the player that he is today. He would struggle to clear the infield; get involved in comical run-outs and would frequently get carted around the park. But, once again, Dhoni invested in his all-round talent, something that Virat Kohli’s team is reaping benefit from at present.