WATCH | MS Dhoni Celebrates 44th Birthday in Style, Fans Flood Social Media With Wishes For 'Thala'

July 7 is a very special day for fans of Indian cricket, as it is the birthday of arguably India's greatest white-ball captain ever in MS Dhoni. The boy from Ranchi retains a strong following among Indian cricket team fans despite having retired from the sport nearly 5 years ago, as the man nicknamed ‘Thala’ continues to ply his trade in the Indian Premier League with Chennai Super Kings.

On the occasion of his 44th birthday, a video of the former India skipper celebrating his birthday with some close friends has gone viral on social media. In it, Dhoni can be seen first cutting a cake and then sharing it with the people. 

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See The Video Below

The viral video also saw plenty of fans respond with wishes to Dhoni. Check out some of the best wishes below. 

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MS Dhoni Remains The Benchmark For Indian Captains

Since MS Dhoni relenquished the captaincy of all formats in 2017, it is fair to say that many of his successors have struggled to live up to the high standards he set. 

Virat Kohli, the first player to take on the mantle after Dhoni stepped down from captaincy, most certainly did - he failed to end India's wait for an ICC trophy, coming close on numerous occasions but falling at the last few hurdles. 

It was a legacy that threatened to bog down Kohli's successor Rohit Sharma too, as he failed to win the ICC World Cup and World Test Championship in 2023 before finally ending the jinx by winning the T20 World Cup in 2024. 

Rohit followed that up with a victory in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 but he has yet to win the most coveted of all ICC tournaments - the World Cup. 

Dhoni, however, is still the gold standard - he remains the only skipper to lead his side to victory in the T20 World Cup, ICC World Cup and Champions Trophy. 

Others, like Rohit Sharma, have come close to matching him - but no one has managed to match or even eclipse the Indian cricket legend when it comes to success as a captain.