Sachin VS Dhoni : A gifted specialist vs a Born Leader

To say the first half of 2011 has been good for MS Dhoni would probably qualify as understatement of the year. He successfully captained India to a World Cup victory after 28 years and led the Chennai Super Kings to its second consecutive IPL triumph.

God Vs MSD

In 2007, when India won the ICC World Twenty 20 under Dhoni's captaincy, all but a few fans and cricket writers dismissed it as a fluke. Dhoni's track record over the last five years, however, has left little room for doubt. From cricket commentators to brand gurus, the verdict on 'Mahi' is that he's India's next big cricketing hero - perhaps the only person in the team who can be spoken of in the same breath as Sachin Tendulkar.

There is of course a lot that sets the current Indian skipper apart from his senior colleague. Santosh Desai, CEO, Future Brands, observes that the difference between Tendulkar and Dhoni is that of a gifted specialist versus a leader. If Tendulkar represents a continuity of the tradition of a middle class Mumbai cricketing superstar a la Sunil Gavaskar, Dhoni is an outsider with no benchmarks of success or failure.Says Desai, "Tendulkar's passion for the game is almost childlike versus the deep wisdom and understanding of a greater kind that Dhoni has: cricket is an instrument not an end in itself." Ambi Parameswaran, CEO, Draftfcb Ulka, adds, "Both offer different role models. Sachin offers discipline, individual excellence, never settling for second best and pushing oneself to the limit. Dhoni stands for rallying the troops, leading from the front, sticking one's neck out, giving due credit and examining mistakes even before one celebrates success"