MS Dhoni to be conferred with Padma Award on the eve of Republic Day

Former Indian captain, Mahendra Singh Dhoni is all set to be awarded the Padma Award at the Rashtrapati Bhavan by the President of India Pranab Mukherjee on the eve of the Republic Day as the government of India cleared him along with two others from the sports category. MS Dhoni’s name for the prestigious award was recommended by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

He was awarded the Padma Shri back in 2009 for his outstanding achievements on the cricket field. That was Dhoni’s second nationalized recognition; for the first time, he was awarded the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award by the Sports Ministry in 2007 after the Indian team won the inaugural edition of the World T20 in South Africa under his leadership.

The Khel Ratna award is the highest sporting honor in the country and is awarded annually by the Ministry of sports Government of India. Having already won the Padma Shri he will now be conferred with the Padma Bhushan award the third highest civilian award after the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan.

Dhoni was in 2014 nominated by the BCCI in the list of eligible candidates for that year’s Padma Awards but the selection committee didn’t find him the best suited for it at that time. This year though the suggestion has been approved and the Indian wicketkeeper-batsman will become the 11th cricketer to be presented with the Padma Bhushan.

Also read- Parthiv Patel is a fighter to the core: MSK Prasad

Dhoni will join ten former cricketers in the likes of- Kapil Dev, Sunil Gavaskar, and Rahul Dravid, to receive the award. Indian batting legend Sachin Tendulkar is the only sportsperson to have been honored with the Bharat Ratna and the only cricketer to be presented the Padma Vibhushan the second highest Indian civilian honor as well. Dravid was the last cricketer who won the award back in 2013.