‘Ye lambe baal wala kaun hai?’ Sachin had no idea about Dhoni, was told ‘tagda player hai’; Harbhajan refused to believe

Former India player Dinesh Mongia recently related the extraordinary tale on a podcast, highlighting the enigma of MS Dhoni.

It's been years since MS Dhoni retired from international cricket but his legend continues to grow. Former India player Dinesh Mongia recently recounted a story from the early days of Dhoni in the noughties which can leave you in thrall to the former India captain.

Harbhajan Singh later had egg all over his face as Dhoni went from strength to strength. (AFP)

Ahead of the India's tour of Pakistan in 2005-2006, India Seniors and India A played a game and Mongia was captain of the India A side. Dhoni, sporting his famous long-flowing mane back then, was also part of that game. Mongia recently related on a podcast how Dhoni wasn't taken seriously by former India spinner Harbhajan Singh during that encounter, and how weeks later Dhoni smashed the Pakistani bowlers to all parts of the ground in Faisalabad to make his critics eat humble pie.

"I think I had got out and MS Dhoni went in next. Sachin Tendulkar and Harbhajan Singh were sitting there and they both asked me: 'who is this guy with the long hair?' I told them how good he was. Harbhajan then said [kind of dismissing his praise for Dhoni] that 'there is a lot of difference between domestic cricket and international cricket. He really can't be that special.'

“Dhoni meanwhile out there pulled Zaheer Khan off the first ball he played and got out. Harbhanjan Singh then kind of mocked me, saying 'there goes you legend.' Dhoni had done very well in the previous matches for India and all. A month later when scored 150 [148 to be precise], he had shown how special he was,” Mongia said.

Don't worry, Thala is still around with CSK!

This goes to show how enigmatic Dhoni has always been. So many times in his career, he has proved his critics wrong. In this case of course, he didn't know what Harbhajan thought of him.

Thala may have retired from international cricket but he continues to play for Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League. The next edition of the high-profile league kicks off later this month, and not long ago CSK CEO Kasi Viswanathan confirmed, dispelling all doubts regarding Dhoni's participation, that the five-time IPL champion with the franchise will be seen this season too in CSK colours.

So you see, 44-year-old Dhoni continues to make the headlines even though he has not been at the height of his powers in the last few seasons. He has really managed to stay relevant, right from the time of Mongia's recollection which is simply remarkable.