Inspiring the inspirational: 5 things MS Dhoni is yet to achieve in his cricketing career

MS Dhoni: What more can this man achieve?

Having won every single multi-national trophy on offer, there’s hardly any CV in cricket better than MS Dhoni‘s in the world.
India’s most successful captain, and the most successful leader in world cricket currently, is just 32 years of age. At a time when his seniors have played on till the end of thirties, it’s not an exaggeration to say that Dhoni has a good 6-7 years of cricket left in him.
Dhoni is not a man known for planning for far ahead. His plans are in place only till the next over, the next match, and the next series. After that, it’s hard to say where Dhoni may end a couple of years down the line.
In 2011, he created a furore by hinting at his retirement from Test cricket two years down the line.  On being asked about defending the World Cup 2015, he said,

“It is series by series. If you see 2015, you know, still three, three and a half years to go. I don’t really know where I will stand. Everything needs to go off well, and then by close to 2013, I will have to take a call whether I can really 100% be available for the 2015 World Cup, because you don’t want a wicketkeeper in the side who has not played at least 100-odd games, at least close to 80-100 games, going into the World Cup.”

2013 is more than half-way done and Dhoni is looking unstoppable in his current form. With series against South Africa (possibly), New Zealand, England and Australia lined up away from home, it’s extremely unlikely that there’s any question over Dhoni’s future in Test cricket.
In Tests, Cheteshwar Pujara has started finding his place in the team and will need a couple of more seasons to really step up to the mantle which seems to have been marked for him. In limited overs, Virat Kohli has created his own legacy of sorts, but at the helm, he’s only just begun.
Dhoni definitely has the 2015 World Cup in his mind. It’s a line which would be crossed under Dhoni’s leadership, but on the other end, a new face is bound to emerge, possibly two or three if India is open to the concept of multiple captains in the future.
So, in this period of 5-6 years, what does Dhoni have in mind for the Indian team of the future? What more can he give to Indian cricket before his departure and what can inspire him enough to carry on playing post the 2015 World Cup?
A list of speculations does have its drawbacks. After all, it’s full of speculations. But these are 5 things that can keep Dhoni on his feet and provide the push to the inspirational captain:

Dhoni missed as Brian Lara bats for Uttarakhand

West Indies' legendary cricketer Brian Lara played a charity match here on Thursday, to help raise funds for victims of the Uttarakhand flood.

While India skipper MS Dhoni, was sorely missed, Lara ensured that his batting as well as words of encouragement helped raise awareness. "I urge anybody with means to support this cause as a lot of families have been destroyed. As much funds and as much hep in any way is possible is needed," he said.

The 44-year-old also left-hander promised more support and participation in the future. "I am here and I will be back for sure and next time I come back I will be back with some West Indian players," he said.

Lara's was the first attempt by any cricketer of international repute to help victims in the state. Massive floods on June 16 this year resulted in a huge loss of life and property.

The students who came out to watch Lara bat though, seemed to put the nightmare behind them as they followed every move of the cricketing icon. "It is every cricketer's dream to play with Brian Lara but it would have been good to play with some Indian cricketers as well in this charity match today," said Ishan of Abhimanyu Crickat Academy.

Ishan's friends agreed that having Dhoni in particular would have been the icing on the cake. "Our caption Dhoni, he has relations in Dehradun, his wife is from Uttarakhand," said Kanakpriya when asked which other cricketer could have further helped the cause. "If he had been here, people would have been more excited. They would have felt someone of their own has come to be with them in this tragedy which has affected them so much."