MSD: The Man, the Leader

by Biswadeep Ghosh, Shriram Iyer (Reading)

The most inspirational story in Indian cricket is that of Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

Generations will remember Dhoni for hitting the spectacular winning six for India in the finals of the 50-over World Cup in 2011 against Sri Lanka, but it is the hope he has given to many aspiring cricketers across this nation that is his true legacy. Born in the lap of poverty and having battled against unimaginable adversities, Dhoni's rise from being just another small-town boy to captain of Team India is a case study in B-schools. With grit, guts and matchless self-belief, Dhoni led India to an ICC World Twenty20, an ICC 50-over Cricket World Cup and an ICC Champions Trophy triumph as well as the number one ranking in Tests. Although he's had his fair share of disappointments, for MSD failure has been yet another motivation to work hard and succeed.

MSD: The Man, the Leader unveils Dhoni's struggles during his growing-up years, analyses his career as a cricketer and captain par excellence and reveals his innate leadership abilities by speaking to luminaries from different walks of life, including Harsh Goenka, Vineet Nayar and Dhanraj Pillay, in a jargon-free, easy-to-read style. Replete with examples of Dhoni's strong personality and inspiring leadership, and marking one decade of his entry into the Indian cricket team, MSD: The Man, the Leader will reinforce the belief: yes, I can.

Genres: Biography

MP3 CD

First published February 8, 2015

Reviews

[Amit · Rating 5 out of 5]

5.0 ⭐

GENRE - BIOGRAPHY

This was the 10th book I took to read 📚 of all books I read so far way back in 2018.

The Author has written a good book altough I believe it's more about his research about MSD and nothing personally said or written by MSD himself. I also do believe this book would be more interesting had it been written post MSD retirement from all formats of Cricket since this only covered the period upto 2011 Cricket World Cup triumph.

Nonetheless I loved this book as I am a Cricket player myself as well as follow the game also I am a MSD fan for life. The book is well researched and written in a very easy language which will make it a great content for beginners.

Thanks 👍

[Gorab · Rating 2 out of 5]

Why I picked this?
Was starving for cricket, and Kindle was selling it for a modest INR 0 :)

This book is crafted from all of Dhoni's news articles, post match presentation interviews, and other info available from public sources. Since I had read most of those ESPNCricInfo articles, didn't find anything unique in this book.

In Sachin's autobiography, Sachin revealed one of Dhoni's insights related to giving interviews to writers.
Dhoni: "Agar sab kuch hum interview mein bol denge, to samay aane par humari book kaun padhega!"

Street smartness at its best :)
Waiting for that day...

[Jairam Mohan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice little book which provides readers with an insight into Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the man and his struggles when getting into the Indian cricket team. By narrating more than quite a few incidents from his career so far, the author tries to provide an insight into what makes the man tick as a player, and more importantly as a leader; the captain of the Indian cricket team.

Detailed review can be found at https://mahabore.wordpress.com/2015/0...

[Nikita Punjabi · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was amazing to read about someone who inspires me so much. It was my very first biography. Somehow I wish I could read something more that I didn't already know. A few chapters, which give you an insight of what MSD is, specially towards the end, are very well written.

[Kevin Shah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a big fan of MSD, found a book on kindle and I was like wow, would get to know about the cricket legend. I started reading the book considering to be his biography. As expected, the first part of the story revolves around his childhood and struggles in Ranchi then it moved on to his cricketing career and the struggling of finding a steady job in a particular city, but he has to move here and there. All these things you can find out in the Movie "M.S.Dhoni The Untold Story" but in a shorter, twisted, and filmy version. The benefit of a book is that you can get to know deeper about his journey. If you are a die-hard cricket fan, then this book might reminisce about some great matches. As I am being born in the 90s, have watched most of the matches of the MSD era. You may find many cricket insights and description highlights of the matches played throughout his cricket life.
But you know about his greatness and temperament, and why people call him the greatest leader of Indian cricket.
So overall if you are a novice to cricket stuff & just here to know about his leadership skills, you might find it boring. else, cricket fans will enjoy this.

[Abhishek Prakash · Rating 2 out of 5]

MSD has created such a brand that just a mention of his name is enough to spike one's curiosity. Same happened with me on this one.
And the experience was not so nice.
Why?
Well because a major portion of the book reads like the match and series highlights played by MSD with post match presentation or conference statements thrown in. Agonizing to read unless you are exactly looking for that numbers and stats.
Another thing is it doesn't offer anything that is not well known about him. Its more of a compilation of everything that's out there albeit in a more presentable way.
The book struggles and fails to keep the momentum going.

Verdict - Skip this one out ..probably some other works would be there that would be far interesting reads on the legend.

[Ramaswamy Raman · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent and well written biography of msd, covering his journey as a small Ranchi boy to his retirement from test cricket in 2014.
The book starts with the life of his father settling down at Ranchi with his family of 5. The story of dhoni is inspirational and has come up as a movie. The book tries to cover the story of dhoni as a player, the captain who was successful and liked but dldo criticised for specially his overseas test record.
The love of Ranchi people for their Mahi is covered in one topic while tge players he nurtured in another along with what people have to say about him in the latter half of the book.
A breezy read where the author shares insights on every series he played as player abd captain.

[Amandeep Sheokand · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book feels more like a compilation of CricInfo articles than a book. Poorly researched.

Too many "the one whose identity cannot be revealed" sources. Rare primary research has been done. Most of the sources are secondary. The writer credits Cricinfo like a million times. Other sources include Newspaper and Magazine articles.

Won't recommend to anyone unless you are a hard-core MSD fan. I could have written this book.

[Sanjana Koul · Rating 3 out of 5]

completed:3/5 not a big cricket fan but I guess I'm a dhoni fan, and hence couldn't resist to read about him. But, this book has more match-centric details than the thought process that went behind drastic changes in the batting order or fielding positions which I, personally was expecting from this book. Undoubtedly, worth a read for die-hard cricket fans.

[Anoochan · Rating 2 out of 5]

I came across this book as Kindle kept recommending this for free.
More than a book, this is a compilation of articles and post match interviews of Dhoni. The tone is monotonous and there is not a lot of perspective and insight provided. Essentially, a lot of husk and not rice.
Do read if you're a Dhoni fan and want to revisit the happy memories.

[Chakra Sampath · Rating 1 out of 5]

Waste of Time

This book is an absolute waste of one's time. One doesn't need a book to read a compilation of Cricinfo articles. It was very tiring to read mundane descriptions about series after series with no new information. Could have been a lot better.

[Pankaj · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is my second book on Dhoni and I was totally disappointed. This book is all about dhoni's batting stats , not about dhoni's mental potential, strategy, his calmness etc.

[Maulik Vanani · Rating 5 out of 5]

Favorite books

[Gangaram Yedage · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book lacks the information with respect to leadership qualities

[Ashish Sharma · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okeish read

Its mostly a summary of all matches and post match comments from Dhoni. Its an ok read. I had to skip through all the scores and match details.

[Ankit Makwana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Captain cool

Not maticulous illustration but still gives you peep into captain cool's cricket journey and overview of his personal life. Overall ok 👍

[Aargee · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was just OK; it talks 90% about Cricket matches & 10% about Dhoni. I should perhaps read some other book on MSD

[Akash Parakh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charters the course of the one of the greatest career in cricketing annals of the world. The man he became from where he had begun, although it is a mere collection of events on and off the field. It is not a candid tell all biography but an accurate tale of MSD: The Captain Cool. That's why 4 stars !!

[Ravi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice read. Could have been better. I think in last few sections author over used statistics and bit off track as well. It would also great if author could mange at least one personal interview with MSD.

[Iam Sunny · Rating 5 out of 5]

i love to read the history of msd from past of his early days

[Munish · Rating 2 out of 5]

Good effort to chronicle the life story of Ranchi's favourite son but ends up repeating much of what is already known. 5 Start to MSD but 2 Star for this Book.

[Roshan · Rating 4 out of 5]

MSD! No, not the Most Significant Digit, but the Most Significant Demeanour (Demener); that the Indian Cricketing history has ever produced. To be very honest, this compilation does not need a review, for the title of the book is self-explanatory. The book gives the details of M S Dhoni's career. This is the story of a man, who changed the dimensions of Indian Cricket and the Indian Cricket captaincy alike while following in the footsteps of yesteryear greats like Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, Kapil Dev, and Sourav Ganguly. If Sourav Ganguly was instrumental in changing the fortunes of Indian Cricket after the match fixing scandal hit Indian Cricket very badly in 2000-01; the man himself carried forward the legacy left behind by Dada and became a beacon of success and charisma. If Sourav Ganguly was a symbol of aggression and grit; M S Dhoni was like a historic monument, who could bear the strongest off storms like an infallible leader, particularly during the earlier days of his captaincy and also as a player. If Sourav Ganguly led us to the World Cup final in the 2003 edition; M S Dhoni was a go-getter, who was successful in conquering all the major ICC tournaments for India, starting with a bang, with a victory in the inaugural edition of the Twenty Twenty World Cup in 2007. Indian Cricket team in 2007, was facing the flak from the Indian mobs and as well as media, due to their early exit from the fifty overs World Cup. Under these gruelling circumstances, M S Dhoni and his young team provided the much needed impetus to Indian Cricket by bringing home, the first edition of the Cup, and in an unexpected manner too. This, till date, remains the second best contribution of Dhoni, as a captain, to Indian Cricket. No points for guessing the best contribution. The hardcover has a mention of all these artifacts and much more. If Kapil's Devils routed out the mighty Windies to register a win in the 1983 World Cup finals; M S Dhoni's cool boys, in reality, stayed calm in the finals to beat the Sri Lankan team to clinch the coveted trophy after twenty seven years. This man creates an aura, which rubs on to his players in a positive way. He's undoubtedly the best captain India has produced, and also the coolest ever. His traits of maintaining cool and calm under the most strenuous periods of the game, is a trait to die for and commands great respect too. He not only handled the pressure associated with Indian captaincy in a wilful, wily manner, but was also exemplary in his conduct and fair play, during his stint as an Indian captain. The most important trait associated with great captains like Mike Brearley, Hansie Cronje, and Steve Waugh is their ability to be shrewd in their analysis of the situation and also their judgment; M S Dhoni seemed to have been naturally blessed with these qualities. He never let the unorthodoxy in his batting affect his captaincy, taking into consideration that the more prominent, but orthodox players of yesteryears were taking a dig at him for his unorthodoxy in his batting. Such was his determination, that he has survived in the international arena for more than a decade now. The man is also the best wicketkeeper that India has produced. His quick reflexes and a great hand-eye coordination won him many a admirers, for not only was his captaincy the talk of the town; but also his more than valuable contribution, solely as a wicket keeper batsman drew many eyes towards him. The best known fact about M S Dhoni is the level-headedness that is on display, even during the most tense moments in a match; and this particular aspect of his captaincy enabled people to rightly label him as 'Captain Cool', which is definitely not an understatement. In addition to the facts associated with M S Dhoni in his International cricket career, the author also makes a mention of his stint as Chennai SuperKings' captain in Indian Premier League. A small section in the book is also dedicated to his personal life. This book leaves no stones unturned to suggest that M S Dhoni, indeed is the most revered Indian Cricket Player after Sachin Tendulkar (Virat Kohli is not far behind in catching up with these legends). As the Legend goes - M S Dhoni is unexpectedly the best player and the captain, whose impact on Indian Cricket's fortunes is the mark of a Legend. Read this book for M S Dhoni. The compilation is insightful, but could have been better. I mark a boundary for this manuscript by Biswadeep Ghosh. A good read for M S Dhoni's fans. Enjoy reading.