MS Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh are two cricketers who changed the style of playing white-ball cricket in India forever. They were the chief architects of the Indian cricket team’s 2011 World Cup triumph. While Dhoni played an excellent knock of 91 runs in the summit clash against Sri Lanka, Yuvraj was the Man of the Tournament.
Yuvraj and Dhoni batted in the middle-order and finished the innings to perfection with some big shots. They have been good friends, and in an ODI match against England in Cuttack, they stitched one of the most memorable partnerships in Indian cricket history. Speaking of Yuvraj Singh and MS Dhoni, here’s a look at some interesting coincidences in the careers of the two Indian legends.
1. Yuvraj Singh and MS Dhoni hit 3 sixes each in their last T20I knock
Yuvraj Singh and MS Dhoni were members of the Indian T20 squad that won the inaugural ICC T20 World Cup event in South Africa. In fact, Dhoni was at non-striker’s end when Yuvraj hit six sixes off an over.
Singh played his last T20I match against England in 2017. In his last innings, the left-handed batsman smashed three sixes. Co-incidentally, Dhoni also smashed three maximums in his last T20I knock against Australia.
2. Both played their last T20I match in Bengaluru
Speaking of the last T20I matches of MS Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh, both batters played their last T20I matches at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium. The pitch at this venue generally produces high-scoring encounters.
The Indian cricket team beat England by 75 runs in Yuvraj’s last appearance in T20I cricket. However, the Men in Blue lost to Australia by eight wickets in what proved to be Dhoni’s last appearance.
3. Test debut in India; ODI and T20I debut outside India
Generally, the new players are often given their debut caps in home conditions. However, MS Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh started their ODI and T20I journey outside India.
Yuvraj and Dhoni made their Test debuts in India, but they received their maiden T20I caps on South African soil. Yuvraj had made his ODI debut in Kenya, while Dhoni played his first ODI match in Bangladesh.
4. First IPL team was of same region they made their Test debut
As mentioned ahead, Dhoni and Yuvraj made their Test debut on Indian soil. Interestingly, Yuvraj made his Test debut in Mohali, while Dhoni played his first Test match at Chennai.
In IPL 2008, which was the first season of IPL, Yuvraj and Dhoni were leading the teams of Mohali and Chennai, respectively. Another interesting coincidence is they made their IPL debut as captains against each other.
5. Both Yuvraj Singh and MS Dhoni had a strike rate of 87 in ODI cricket
Yuvraj and Dhoni knew the art of scoring runs in ODI cricket. They kept the scoreboard ticking with strike rotation and also smashed a few big hits in the middle.
A strike rate of more than 80 is considered decent in ODI cricket. Both Yuvraj and Dhoni ended their respective ODI careers with a strike rate of 87. Yuvraj’s strike rate was 87.67, while Dhoni had an ODI strike rate of 87.56.
