Virat Kohli presents MS Dhoni with platinum bat on his 300th ODI

It has been a common perception that legacies were based on Test credentials of a cricketer and for the longest time, MS Dhoni fought the battle of becoming a Test leader and Test cricketer of repute, but sadly never reached the level that was expected of him. But if there is any format Dhoni will be hugely remembered by, it will be in the shorter formats. Ahead of his 300th ODI in Colombo, to honour his contributions to Indian cricket, the players gave a round of applause for the former skipper and Kohli stepped forward to hand over a platinum bat as a pleased MS Dhoni accepted it. 

Speaking at the toss, Kohli praised his former skipper and rightfully termed him a true legend of the game. 

“Dhoni has been a legend of the game. We know the importance of him in our cricketing careers. We all respect him, we all love him,” Kohli said at the toss.

Thirteen years ago, in December 2004, the wicket-keeper batsman made his debut in international cricket and got out for a duck against Bangladesh. But after four matches, his stunning assault against the mighty Pakistan pacers left everyone in awe, and his continued rise in international cricket saw him leading the team to three major events to victory – ICC T20 World Cup in 2007, ICC World Cup in 2011, and ICC Champions Trophy in 2013 apart from leading India to the No.1 spot in the Test rankings for the first time ever in 2009.

Even though he might not be the same force he was with the bat, his glovework is still as brilliant as ever. Now reaching a special milestone of 300 ODIs and joining the likes of Tendulkar, Dravid, Azharuddin, Ganguly, and Yuvraj, it is a matter of pride for the former Indian skipper and he will try to deliver with the bat, yet again as were the case in last two ODIs.