Former India opener Aakash Chopra narrated an interesting incident involving MS Dhoni when he was yet to make his India debut and explained how he got to know the keeper-batter’s thought process which led to him becoming one of the most celebrated captains in cricket world.

The cricketer-turned-commentator recalled an incident involving himself and Dhoni that made him realize that the latter was destined for greater things.

When India A toured Zimbabwe and Kenya in 2004, Dinesh Karthik was above the pecking order than MS Dhoni. Therefore, Chopra was stunned as he saw Dhoni bowling to Karthik in the nets and decided to ask Dhoni why he was helping his competitor.

However, Chopra, the senior pro at that time, was left impressed and surprised at the answer Dhoni gave to him.

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“It was the year 2004 when India A had the tour of Kenya and Zimbabwe. MS Dhoni was the reserve keeper and Dinesh Karthik played in the XI. Once as he was bowling to Karthik in the nets, I asked Dhoni ‘Why are you bowling to him? He is your direct competition. If he does well, you don’t play in the XI. You should practice batting or keeping. Why bowling?’ To this, Dhoni said ‘Please don’t stop me. I want to bowl. If you want to bat you can, I will bowl to you too’,” Chopra said in a video shared on Twitter.

Chopra further said that this thought process of MS Dhoni brought him much success over the years.

“When I look back, I realized the meaning of that incident and understood why only he has been able to achieve what he has. Dhoni wasn’t competing against Dinesh Karthik or anybody else. He was competing with himself. So, there’s the lesson. Be the best version of yourself because you are your biggest competition,” he added.