"Intense Virat and relaxed Dhoni": Dhawan opens up on captaincy era of India

Former Team India cricketer Shikhar Dhawan opened up on the characteristics that define the different captaincy styles of celebrated stalwarts Virat Kohli and Mahendra Singh DhoniIn his celebrated career Shikhar Dhawan has played under two captains Virat and Dhoni Under the captaincy of them both Team India set standards high in the international circuitShikhar Dhawan debuted for India in international cricket under Dhonis captaincy The lefthander then contributed to making India a modernday giant under Kohlis captaincyFor the former explosive southpaw Dhonis calm demeanour and experience of making his team perform at optimum level stood out the mostAll of them have their own characters and nature Dhoni is very relaxed He doesnt talk much He talks during the meeting Even before the match every captain talks He is very relaxed Even after the match he doesnt talk much So Dhoni bhais presence was very strong and of course when I played under him he had already become an experienced captain and had achieved so much already He knew in and out about how a team is run and how a player is prepared Dhawan said in an exclusive interview with ANIAlso ReadMIrsquos Trent to the fourUnder Dhonis captaincy India played 332 matches across all formats winning 178 losing 120 and drawing 15 With an aura of calmness around him Dhoni led India to glory in the 2007 T20 World Cup 2011 ODI World Cup and 2013 Champions TrophyUnder Dhonis leadership India completed a historic whitewash over Australia in the 201213 BorderGavaskar Trophy featuring at the pinnacle of Indias distinguished achievementsDhawan who played an invaluable role in Indias success in the famous whitewash and many other series sees the calmness aspect of Dhonis captaincy as his strengthNo Dhoni bhai has never I have never seen him shout That was his strength Thats what he brings to the table He is absolutely amazing But when you look at his eyes you get scared he saidAfter the end of Dhonis ear Indian cricket went through a transition phase under Virat Kohlis leadership which brought intensity and aggression in the Men in Blue approachIn his seven years of rule India faced a calamity considering a drought in ICC silverware Yet India under Virats rule sent the fans into a frenzy with their brand of cricketWith Ravi Shastri at the helm the animated celebrations the undying attitude and an unwavering dedication changed the crickets landscape especially in the TestsThe Indian team with a belligerent spirit driven by fitness and proactively in pursuit of victory were the key aspects of his captaincy There were many firsts in Virats captaincy but Indias ascendancy in Test cricket was a sight to beholdVirat is intense He has a different energy Virat has changed the culture of fitness a lot because he is so fit so that culture came that you have to be fit our yoyo test was done So Virat moved that thing forward At the same time He kept on getting mature as a captain as well When he captained in his first test match and later with that experience one keeps getting refined So Virats intensity is quite strong Shikhar Dhawan saidUnder Virats era of ruthless aggression India climbed to the top of the ICC Test rankings and stayed there for 42 consecutive months from October 2016 to March 2020 Overall Kohli led India in 213 matches won 135 lost 60 and 11 ended in a drawWith ANI Inputs