12 years of the 'Mahi-way'

Hyderabad: Mahendra Singh Dhoni, a name that defines a part of Indian Cricket. A player, captain, wicket-keeper and a finisher; today marks 12 years since Mahendra Singh Dhoni captained the Indian team for the very first time.

The occasion couldn't get any better as India went up against Pakistan in the Inaugural T20 World Cup back in 2007. India was defending 138 as Pakistan required 1 run from 1 ball. Not only did India defend the total, but Dhoni also sent in batsmen like Robin Uthappa and Virender Sehwag for the bowl-out which resulted in India's win.

�This was just the beginning of many surprising choices that lead Dhoni to become one of India's best captains.

Let's have a look at a few of those decisions that came as a blessing in disguise for India under Dhoni's Captaincy.

Giving the final over of the T20 World Cup final to Joginder Sharma.

Making the tough call of dropping veteran players due to their lack of fitness.

Backing youngsters like Virat Kohli continuously since the beginning.

Deciding to bat ahead of Yuvraj in the 2011 World Cup final.

Promoting Rohit Sharma to open the innings.

Recognising talents like Ravi Ashwin, Mohammed Shami and playing them consistently.

Building three different teams for three different formats.

Handing over the Captaincy to Virat Kohli at the right time.

These iconic decisions, made by MS Dhoni, changed the face of Indian Cricket.

As captain, MS Dhoni has not only raised the standards of Indian cricket but has won many accolades for himself.

Won the Inaugural T20 World Cup.

Won the CB series in Australia.

Took India to the No.1 position in tests for the first time.

Won the 50 over World Cup in 2011.

Won the ICC Champions Trophy in 2013.

Won all the 3 ICC trophies in 6 years.

Won a test at the Lord's after a period of over 28 years.

Captained the team for a record 331 matches. (The most by any captain)

First Asian captain to win 25 test matches.

First Non-Australian captain to win 100 ODIs.

The first captain to win 150 T20's, 100 IPL games.

These are a few notable achievements MS Dhoni obtained during his captaincy period.

A hashtag '#12YearsofCaptainDhoni' is now trending in India.