Former Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh strongly criticized a Pakistani journalist for comparing legendary Indian wicketkeeper-batter and World Cup-winning skipper MS Dhoni to his Pakistani counterpart Mohammed Rizwan. The journalist, Farid Khan, conducted a poll on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), asking followers which player they believed was better, Dhoni or Rizwan.
This comparison infuriated Harbhajan, who took to X to express his disapproval. He questioned the journalist for making such a comparison between a cricketing legend and a current player, asserting that Dhoni is still the number one wicketkeeper-batter in world cricket and that no one is better behind the stumps than the 43-year-old Indian cricketer. Harbhajan wrote, “What r u smoking nowadays ???? What a silly question to ask. Bhaiyo isko batao. DHONI bhut aage hai RIZWAN se. Even if u will ask Rizwan he will give u an honest answer for this. I like Rizwan, he is a good player who always plays with intent, but this comparison is wrong. DHONI no 1 even today in world cricket. None better than him behind stumps.”
MS Dhoni is widely regarded as one of the greatest wicketkeeper-batters of all time. He scored 17,266 runs at an average of 44.96 across all three formats, with 16 centuries and 108 fifties, and a best score of 224. As a captain, Dhoni led India to the number one Test ranking, the ICC T20 World Cup in 2007, the ICC Cricket World Cup in 2011, and the ICC Champions Trophy in 2013, making him the only captain to win all major ICC white-ball tournaments. In ODIs, Dhoni scored 10,773 runs in 350 matches at an average of 50.57, with 10 centuries and 73 fifties, and a best score of 183*.
As captain of the Chennai Super Kings (CSK), Dhoni led the franchise to five Indian Premier League (IPL) titles. In the latest IPL season, although CSK failed to make the playoffs, Dhoni performed admirably, scoring 161 runs in 11 innings at an average of 53.66 and a strike rate of 220.54, with a best score of 37*.
On the other hand, Mohammed Rizwan, Pakistan’s premier wicketkeeper-batter, has scored 7,017 runs at an average of 43.85 in 206 matches, with six centuries and 51 fifties, and a best score of 131*. While Rizwan has delivered fine performances, he has not yet led Pakistan to a major trophy. His best format is T20Is, where he has scored 3,313 runs in 102 matches at an average of 48.72 and a strike rate of 126.45, with a century and 29 fifties, and a best score of 104*.
