‘The Dhoni Touch’ Book Review: Up close and personal with MS Dhoni

There have been numerous books written on MS Dhoni in the past but none of them touch true Dhoni fans as “The Dhoni Touch” does. The book doesn’t focus on the illustrated cricketing career of Dhoni; it rather unwraps some interesting anecdotes of his life beyond cricket.

Bharat Sundaresan, author and a renowned figure in cricket journalism has excellently portrayed MS Dhoni’s life outside the cricket field. Dhoni doesn't involve himself in many interviews unlike his fellow and former cricketers. He follows his own set of rules and sticks to them. Getting an insight into his personality is akin to getting hold of the 'Holy Grail', in other words.

Bharat didn’t let the 'Dhoni touch' fade away throughout the book. He touched upon some very interesting moments of Dhoni's life yet maintained the composure of the book with some great tales of his professional life or Dhoni- The Brand. He also shared his struggle to track down Dhoni for an Interview.

In the course of the 206-page book, Sundaresan details his rendezvous with a few close Dhoni friends and former cricketers. Chittu bhaiya, one of MSD's closest friends, shared the rise of Dhoni in exactly the manner Dhoni wanted to. No more, No less.

Bharat traced down Ranchi and explored the places that Dhoni visits during his time at home. In an interesting conversation with his childhood coach, Keshab Ranjan Banerjee and Pitch Curator at MECON stadium, they shared some emotional moments of his early days.

Once DAV Jawahar Vidya Mandir (Dhoni's School) senior team lost a close cricket final and fumed Banerjee left in the school bus telling players to come on foot in the scorching afternoon heat. The distance between the school and the cricket ground was approximately 6 km. Banerjee was waiting at the main gate of the school when he saw Dhoni leading the pack with no sign of revenge on any players' face. Though he knew they took a lift yet, it was Dhoni's calm that settled the dust for Banerjee.

MS Dhoni has plans to serve Indian Army post retirement (Photo Source: Youtube)

While Dhoni's relation with his elder brother has always been a subject of conjecture, Dhoni's close friend, Chhotu said, ‘Woh din bhar mere sath hi rehta…wahan par hai, lekin sath hai.... nahi lagta hai wo alag hai’ (He's always here with me.. he may be anywhere, but he is with me.. I don't feel he is separate from me). The famous McDowell's No1 Soda 'Dhoni ki No1 Yaari' ad, starred by real Chittu, Chhotu and Dhoni, to some extent was narrated by Dhoni himself, especially the chai scene.

Kiran More talks about Dhoni's entry into world cricket. Colonel Vembu Shankar unfolds Dhoni's perpetual love for Indian Army. Chittu and Chhotu reveal his shades of life in a very fine manner and former cricketer VB Chandrasekhar, who was the chief selector of CSK decodes Mahi's leadership skills.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni is respected and loved around the world still there aren’t resources which reveal his mysteriousness. Every fan of his wants to know more about their role model and Bharat has unravelled Mahendra Singh Dhoni the enigma in a very subtle manner.