Why Dhoni's value to the team is unparalleled in history of Indian cricket

Indian cricket has never had a wicket-keeper who could double up as a genuine batsman in the manner of MS Dhoni. Add the phenomenal captaincy numbers to the equation and we have a gift to cherish, the like of which the nation has never seen before 

To put this in perspective let us look at Dhoni compared with the regular wicket-keepers of the past.

Wicketkeeper	Tests	Runs	Ave	100s	50s
MS Dhoni	69	3692	38.45	5	26
SMH Kirmani	88	2759	27.04	2	12
FM Engineer	46	2611	31.08	2	16
NR Mongia	44	1442	24.03	1	6
KS More	49	1285	25.7	0	7
BK Kunderan	18	981	32.70	2	3

Leading from the front

One struggles to understand the thought process behind the claims. The entire case against Dhoni is built on his failure in the two tours, and the logic collapses spectacularly when we look at the figures of the suggested replacements.

England and Australia tours 2011-12 – Tales of woe
Name	M	Runs	Avge	100s	50s
R Dravid	8	655	46.78	3	1
V Kohli	4	300	37.50	1	1
SR Tendulkar	8	560	35.00	0	4
MS Dhoni	7	322	26.83	0	3
VVS Laxman	8	337	21.06	0	3
G Gambhir	7	283	20.21	0	1
V Sehwag	6	239	19.91	0	2

If we open our windows wider than the last two tours and look at his entire captaincy period, the following two tables give an indication of how Dhoni has led from the front. As in the tale of woes above, during his entire tenure at the helm, he enters groups dominated by formidable batsmen while continuing to don the gloves of a wicket-keeper.

Top 5 batting averages as Indian Test captain
Captain	Tests	Runs	Avge	100s	50s
SR Tendulkar	25	2054	51.35	7	7
SM Gavaskar	47	3449	50.72	11	14
R Dravid	25	1736	44.51	4	10
M Azharuddin	47	2856	43.93	9	9
MS Dhoni	39	2270	42.83	4	17

Indian captains who average over 50 in wins
Captain	Tests	Runs	Average	100s	50s
M Azharuddin	14	1071	63.00	4	3
MS Dhoni	19	1286	61.23	3	9
R Dravid	8	637	57.90	1	4
SM Gavaskar	9	795	53.00	3	3

And as in the case of such quiet performers, his absence will be felt once he departs from the scene. Till then, the country can count the blessings as long as the ice-cool man goes out to toss the coin, to perch behind the wicket, and to add substance to the batting order.