Dinesh Karthik names ex-India captain who spotted MS Dhoni's talent before Sourav Ganguly

Indian cricketer Dinesh Karthik has spoken about his admiration for former Indian captain MS Dhoni several times in the past. While the players have competed for the same wicketkeeper-batsman position practically throughout their careers, Dinesh Karthik seems to have great respect for the CSK captain. While MS Dhoni has been one of the most successful Indian cricketers, fans know little about his background as the player is reserved about his private life. Building on what fans caught a glimpse of through the MS Dhoni movie, Dinesh Karthik has shed light on his first impressions of MS Dhoni.

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Dinesh Karthik shares his first impression of MS Dhoni    

Speaking on the ‘RK Show’, Dinesh Karthik talked about how MS Dhoni has always been a unique human being who does things his own way. Dinesh Karthik shared an instance from his India A days when both MS Dhoni and he were a part of the same team that travelled once to Zimbabwe and Kenya for a triseries involving Pakistan A in the end of 2003. The KKR captain corroborated that it was actually former India captain Dilip Vengsarkar who had first spotted MS Dhoni. At the time, Vengsarkar was appointed as the head of BCCI's then newly-formed Talent Resource and Development Wing, which was created by the board chief, the late Jagmohan Dalmiya.

Vengsarkar's knack of picking talent for the national side continued even in 2008 when Virat Kohli credited him for drafting him into the Indian team following his century against New Zealand A in a match in Australia.

Coming back to Dhoni, Karthik claimed that MS Dhoni remained very strong and bullish about his unique technique, which allowed him to carve a niche throughout his career.

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The KKR captain also talked about his rivalry with MS Dhoni

Soon after Dinesh Karthik made his debut for India, he had to cede his place to MS Dhoni, who then went onto become one of the permanent fixtures in the Sourav Ganguly led Indian team. Recalling that phase, Karthik conceded that it was a little hard for him to come to terms with the fact that he had lost his place in the Indian team. The 35-year-old then went onto explain how he reinvented himself as a Test opener and a midfielder order batsmen to make a comeback into the Indian team.

Dinesh Karthik mentioned that he made it a point to juggle different roles in the team so that he could make most of whatever opportunities he was given in the side.

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While it was interesting to hear from the player about the Karthik-Dhoni relationship, his comments also offered a unique insight into MS Dhoni’s initial playing days. Both Sourav Ganguly and Dilip Vengsarkar have in the past talked about MS Dhoni. Sourav Ganguly had earlier this month admitted how he had asked the selectors to pick MS Dhoni for the Bangladesh series.

Sourav Ganguly later called the player as one of the best in the history of ODI cricket. Dilip Vengsarkar, who also served as chairman of the national selection committee between 2006-08 has also talked about how he spotted MS Dhoni in the past. Dilip Vengsarkar is also credited with the bold decision of choosing MS Dhoni as the captain of the Indian team in 2007, a move which proved to be hugely successful later on.

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Image Courtesy: PTI