Subham -এর Sports Blog

July 13, 2002, England vs India, NatWest series final, Lord's India chasing a mammoth 326, No. 10 batsman Zaheer Khan was on the strike while the man in form Mohammed Kaif was at the non-striker end. Andrew Flintoff bowled the third ball of the final over with India requiring 2 runs to win. Zak nudged the ball into the covers and the batsmen sprinted like hares to collect the winning runs, India won by 2 wickets with 3 balls remaining - what was the highest chase ever by any team at Lord's in ODIs. Meanwhile, someone from the iconic Lord's balcony was waving his jersey. The glare in his eyes looked more like burning embers and this man was none other than the then India captain Sourav Ganguly. Sourav Ganguly's reaction to that victory became a cult moment in the history of world cricket. An 'in-your-face captain' waving the shirt forced the world to reckon the arrival of a completely new Indian team who could challenge any opponent

So it's another July 7. Mahendra Singh Dhoni grown one year older. At 39, he is well and truly in the evening of his career. They say, in the life of every athlete there comes a time when there are signs that the end is near. His keeping hasn't been without faults, the byes seem to come every game and an odd edge too finds its way past him. As for his batting, every time he has walked out to bat in the last World Cup, he seemed to be playing from memory. Actually, all good things must come to an end and there's this feeling that Dhoni might well be on his last lap. And knowing Dhoni, the kind of person he is, there may not be an official announcement of one of India's most popular and successful captains walking into the sunset. Dhoni has always been a man at peace with himself. At the height of his success, he was firmly grounded. He is someone who has never allowed all his fame and fortune to control his life. He likes to keep things simple. And,