Ever since my childhood, I’ve watched many a superhero in movies like Superman, Dark Knight, Spiderman and many more. Their heroic presence on the screen, elevated by the brilliance of directors’ perspective and genius of musician’s feel, is always adrenaline-pumping and goose-bumping. Fundamentally, they characterize the astonishing deeds and moving sacrifices of a real life hero, no? Despite lacking the glamorous appeal that movie stars need to inevitably possess, the brain and vision of a real time hero are more beautiful to learn.

MS Dhoni is one such gift of GOD that India and its cricket enjoys. He is a celebrity and an inspirational stature to a billion hearts. His bat inspires many youngsters to pursue something that eludes every cricketer, the Indian Cricket Team Cap. Wave of his hand, drawing frenzy in the crowds, is more powerful than a Tsunami tide. Above all, his outstanding progress from a small town boy to a country’s popular representative is a motivating story for many who wish to believe in assailing the sky high targets.

The man, who has delivered invincibility in cricket for the ‘Blue’ brigade, shall be back in action for CLT20 at JSCA International Stadium Complex, Ranchi. How does it feel playing in front of that home crowd, which has watched you transcend from a normal person to an icon of the nation? In his toss time interview for the first ever ODI at Ranchi, Dhoni claimed to have known at least 15000 attendees in the stadium. While it is normal that Ranchi adores Dhoni for having given it a nation wide recognition, it is even more remarkable that Dhoni adores 15000 of them back too! In his confession, Dhoni has paid a tribute in return to ‘his’ Ranchi and ‘his’ people. We are talking about a man who has uncountable accolades and awards attributed to his name. Considering all these factors, I admire Dhoni for having built the most important traits into his DNA – humility, simplicity and genuine respect for others.

However, as Mr. Gavaskar points out, I’m sure that not many people closer to Dhoni, even his friends, know him as much as they think they do. While his romance with his home crowd could be a nerve-wrecking factor, I believe it hardly affects Dhoni. If any, it only propels him to perform his job even better, as he knows for a fact that it would implicitly mean entertaining ‘his’ crowds even more. With all the emotions and excitement that the fans fill you with, it is real tough to focus on your job. But, Dhoni does it exceptionally well not just in Ranchi, but across the world. I’ve known only another player who is capable of handling the weight of expectations of a billion hearts and whose cricket can get those hearts racing – he is called the GOD of cricket!

Sometimes, I wonder if Dhoni bothers to carry any emotions and nerves. On the cricket field, he isolates himself from the endless world of distractions, even if the distraction happens to be a boundless affection. To me, all he does on the cricket field is focusing on the present moment and accumulating many momentary successes together to achieve the ultimate victory. How tough is it to remain calm? Marlon Samuels is not known to be the most expressive on the field. But, have we not seen Marlon being involved in nasty tirades? While calmness and inexpressive demeanor are playable, composure is natural. An angry young man, Virat Kohli, can be outgoing and occasionally brash. But, composure and desire for victory often remind him to come out of those enraging moments, on the right side. So, it is not enough to maintain calmness, for lacking a complementary attribute called composure can leave you deserted. Dhoni’s moves and presence as a leader of the team are exemplary of the state of mind he carries on to the field – calm and composed. Dhoni is the most enviable in this aspect.

MS Dhoni has produced delightful strokes and unbelievable turnarounds on countless number of occasions, enthralling fans over the past decade. He has led India with dignity, respect, honor and utmost pride across the world. Now, Dhoni can explain his place of origin to the rest of the world, being humbly admissive of his part in placing Ranchi on the world map! So, all small town boys out there – if you find it hard to describe your origin, you can redefine it with the will and character that heroes like Dhoni epitomize.