Mahendra Singh Dhoni, known by his full name M.S. Dhoni, was an Indian cricketer who rose to fame in the early 21st century and served as captain of the squad that won the one-day Cricket World Cup in 2011. He was born in Ranchi, Bihar (now Jharkhand), India, on July 7, 1981.
In 2004, Dhoni made his debut abroad. In his fifth international game against Pakistan, he showcased his bat skills with a 148-run innings. He reached the India Test team within a year, when he made a name for himself by scoring a century (100 runs or more in a single innings) against Pakistan.
Dhoni assumed leadership of the one-day team in 2007 despite having little experience and guided India to the Twenty20 (T20) global championship. In December 2009, among other things, series victories over Australia and Sri Lanka propelled India to the top of the International Cricket Council (ICC) Test rankings for the first time.