Indian cricket's latest pin-up boy Mahendra Singh Dhonimight have become a top-grade football goalkeeper had he not strayed into thewillow-cherry game.
Starting his sports career as a goalkeeper in school,the Ranchi lad's keeping skills between the posts had prompted his coach to askhim to don the wicketkeeper's gloves and the rest is history. What was soccer'sloss turned out to be cricket's gain.
"He was a good goalkeeper during school days. Inone of the cricket matches he was asked to keep wickets. He allowed only fourbyes," cricket coach Chanchal Bhattacharya said.
Agreeing with Bhattacharya, Dhoni's father Pan Singhsaid "My son used to play as a goalkeeper in colony football matches. Heswitched over to cricket after he was asked by the coach."
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The 23-year-old Dhoni's exulting stroke play remindsold-timers of another wicketkeeper-batsman of Bihar, Daljit Singh, who haddisplayed free stroke making in 1960-70.
Dhoni, the first international cricketer from Jharkhand,is also the latest from undivided Bihar which has produced players like SabaKarim, Subroto Banerjee, Ramesh Sexana and Randhir Singh.
A student of DAV School and now in Gosnar College, Dhoni, who set ablaze theVisakhapatnam stadium with a scintillating 123-ball 148, is a good student too.
R.E. Singh, the former principal of DAV Shyamali whereDhoni was a student, said right from the school days, he was sincere and hardworking.
Dhoni's father said he always encouraged his son andnever interfered in his goals.
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According to Bhattacharya, Dhoni's fireworks hadstarted in first class cricket a couple of years ago, mesmerising the likes ofpacemen Venkatesh Prasad, Doda Ganesh and spinner Sunil Joshi of Karnataka whowere in Ranchi to play a Ranji Trophy match.
"Dhoni is known for his attacking strokes whichwas proved in the Visakhapatnam one-dayer," Bhattacharya said.
On his part, the youngster remembers the pain andsacrifices his parents had made for his sake and said and he would remainindebted to them.
PTI
