MS Dhoni cracks ton against Chattisgarh in Vijay Hazare Trophy

MS Dhoni was back into his superb best with the bat by scoring a 94-ball hundred against Chhatisgarh in the Vijay Hazare Trophy.

MS Dhoni scored a run-a-ball hundred against Chattisgarh in the Vijay Hazare Trophy on Sunday to keep his side battling in the second game of the tournament. His century came in 94 balls and saw eight boundaries and four sixes. In fact, he moved from 96 to over the ton mark with a six at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.

To make his century even more worthwhile, Dhoni and Shahbaz Nadeem picked up the pieces for Jharkhand after they were in turbulent waters at 57/6 in the 20th over. Their partnership of 151 runs, however, drew to a close when Nadeem was dismissed for 53 by Pankaj Rao.

Dhoni upped the tempo after crossing the milestone to ensure Jharkhand had a competitive total to defend. He added two fours and two sixes to make the most of the final few overs. Finally, Dhoni was dismissed on the final ball of the 50th over at 129 runs from 107 balls at with a strike rate of 120.56. His high scoring propelled Jharkhand to 243/9.

Despite having nothing to prove and having won everything that there is for a player, Dhoni has chosen to play in the competition and lead the team. Elsewhere, he has either relinquished his captaincy role – for India in Tests and limited overs – or been unceremoniously removed – for Rising Pune Supergiants in the Indian Premier League(IPL).

In the first match of the tournament against Karnataka, Dhoni scored 43 runs but it wasn’t enough to guide Jharkhand to victory as they lost by five runs.

Dhoni’s approach to the tournament has been extraordinary since the onset as the former India skipper surprised everyone by choosing to travel with his teammates in a train from Ranchi and drawing attention from eager fellow passengers, staff and railway officials.

Dhoni upped the tempo after crossing the milestone to ensure Jharkhand had a competitive total to defend. He added two fours and two sixes to make the most of the final few overs. Finally, Dhoni was dismissed on the final ball of the 50th over at 129 runs from 107 balls at with a strike rate of 120.56. His high scoring propelled Jharkhand to 243/9.