On the account of India's upcoming 75th Independence day celebrations, we take a look at some special players who made a big impact in not just their respective sports but also helped the nation look at sports in a different light. They inspired a whole generation to follow in their footsteps to and have encouraged them to bring more glory to India in the future.

MS Dhoni - Dhoni will undoubtedly go down as perhaps India's greatest ever sports personality. Ever since he took over the captaincy, he instilled a new level of confidence in the team. He is the only captain to win the World T20, the ICC World Cup and the Champions Trophy. He transformed the Indian team into serial winners and his own star status only grew further with his ice cool demeanour on the pitch when faced with high pressure situations. Now, every young kid who wants to play the sport dreams of being the next Dhoni.