Long before Wriddhiman Saha established himself as one of India's finest wicketkeepers in Test cricket, he had already witnessed firsthand the sheer explosiveness and game awareness of MS Dhoni during a club match that left a lasting impression on him.
Saha once recalled an unforgettable innings where he opened alongside Dhoni in a club game and watched the former India captain race away to a century in stunning fashion while he himself barely progressed at the other end.
"We opened the innings together and I remember that I was batting on 36 runs and Dhoni was on nine," Saha had said while speaking about the memorable knock.
According to Saha, Dhoni simply asked him to rotate strike regularly - and what followed became a perfect example of the
former India captain's brutal acceleration ability.
"He said to me, 'take a single and give him the strike', and before I realized it, I was still batting on 41 and he had completed his century," Saha recalled.
Saha Learnt Closely From Dhoni
For Saha, the innings was not merely about witnessing power-hitting from the non-striker's end. It became part of a much bigger learning experience that shaped his own cricket journey later.
Saha spent several years around Dhoni in the Indian team setup, particularly during the transition period after Dhoni's retirement from Test cricket in 2014. The Bengal wicketkeeper eventually became India's first-choice Test keeper and earned immense praise for his glove work behind the stumps.
Despite their contrasting batting styles, Saha often acknowledged similarities in temperament between himself and Dhoni.
"I have learned a lot from him in the past years and we both share the same temperament while playing the game," Saha had explained.
Dhoni's Ability to Shift Gears Instantly
The story once again highlighted one of Dhoni's greatest strengths as a batter - his ability to completely change the pace of an innings within a few overs.
Even during his early domestic cricket days, Dhoni had developed a reputation for overwhelming bowling attacks once he settled at the crease.
Saha's recollection perfectly captured how quickly momentum could swing once Dhoni began targeting boundaries consistently.
At one stage in the innings, Saha was comfortably ahead on 36 while Dhoni was batting on just nine. Moments later, Dhoni had already completed a century while Saha remained stranded on 41.
That extraordinary acceleration later became one of the defining features of Dhoni's legendary career across international cricket and the IPL.
A Career Overshadowed Yet Inspired
Saha's own international journey was deeply linked with Dhoni's presence in Indian cricket.
For years, opportunities remained limited because Dhoni dominated India's wicketkeeping spot across formats. Saha himself admitted in earlier interviews that he understood regular opportunities would only arrive after Dhoni stepped away from the format.
When Dhoni retired from Test cricket midway through the 2014-15 Australia tour, Saha inherited one of the toughest roles in Indian cricket - succeeding a legendary wicketkeeper-captain.
And while Saha never carried Dhoni's aura in white-ball cricket, he built a highly respected career through discipline, consistency and elite wicketkeeping skills.
Two Different Careers, One Shared Memory
Dhoni eventually became one of the greatest captains and finishers in cricket history, leading India to multiple ICC titles and transforming Indian white-ball cricket forever.
Saha, meanwhile, carved out a quieter but equally respected legacy as a specialist wicketkeeper renowned for his sharp reflexes and technical excellence behind the stumps.
But among the many memories Saha carries from his long cricketing journey, that extraordinary club match innings with Dhoni clearly remains one of the most unforgettable.
Because few cricketers can say they were batting on 41 - and still watched their partner complete a century before them.
