Rohit Sharma doesn’t like comparisons between different captains, even if such observations come from his own team-mates. Sharma was responding to Suresh Raina‘s views on the Super Over podcast, where he said, “He [Rohit] is the next MS Dhoni for the Indian cricket team.”
“Yes, I heard about that comment from Suresh Raina,” Sharma said in a Twitter video he posted in reply to a fan question. “MS Dhoni is one of a kind and nobody can be like him and I believe comparisons should not be made like that, every individual is different and has his strengths and weaknesses.”
Last week, Raina had likened Sharma’s calmness and leadership skills to those of Dhoni. His observations may have stemmed from Sharma’s impressive record as captain. He has led the Mumbai Indians to a record four IPL titles, one more than Dhoni at the Chennai Super Kings. Among those who have captained in at least 30 IPL matches, Sharma’s win percentage of 58.65 is behind only that of Dhoni (60.11%) and Sachin Tendulkar (58.82%).
He has also led India to title wins at the Nidahas Trophy (T20I format) and the Asia Cup (50 overs) in 2018 while standing in for Virat Kohli. Overall, he has led India in ten ODIs and 19 T20Is, winning eight and 15 of them respectively.
“I have seen him, he is calm, he likes to listen,” Raina had said. “He likes to give confidence to the players and on top of that, he likes to lead from the front. When a captain leads from the front and, at the same time, he gives respect to the dressing-room atmosphere, you know you have it all.
“He thinks everyone is a captain. I have seen him, I have played under him when we won the Asia Cup in Bangladesh. I have seen how he gives confidence to young players like Shardul [Thakur], Washington Sundar and [Yuzvendra] Chahal.”
Raina had particularly pointed to how players were empowered around Sharma, the captain. “Around him, players enjoy the intensity, they enjoy his aura,” Raina said. “When you enjoy the aura of a player, you like to be positive and I think that is what he is good at.
“MS Dhoni was brilliant. He [Sharma] has won more [IPL] trophies than MS, but they both are very similar. Both of them, as captains, like to listen. When your captain is listening, you can solve a lot of problems, you can solve the mental aspects of the players. So in my book, they both are wonderful.”