Saba Karim reveals why Sourav Ganguly did not pick MS Dhoni for India's tour of Pakistan in 2004

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Former India wicket-keeper batter Saba Karim has revealed the first instance when he spotted MS Dhoni as a player of the Bihar Ranji Trophy team.

Karim back then was appointed as the selector for Bihar when he spotted the batting brillance of Dhoni which he showcased for 15 years in international cricket. However, the basic wicket-keeping skills were lacking back then and Dhoni worked hard on it after getting inputs from Saba Karim and other specialists in Bihar Ranji team coaching setup.

“My story is very interesting. The first time I saw MS Dhoni, it was his second year in the Ranji Trophy. He used to play for Bihar. I saw him batting and keeping, and I still remember while he was batting, he had that brilliance which we even saw later, playing big lofted shots to a spinner or a pace bowler.

"Even for wicket-keeping, the footwork that one should have, was lacking a bit. We worked with him on this at that time, and he still remembered what he was taught then. When we used to chat, he used to speak about it. It was a turning point in MS’s career where he actually got going. In one-dayers, we started to let him open because his batting was so strong and he used to get quick runs," JioCinema expert Syed Saba Karim revealed.

Karim then discussed Dhoni’s first series for India 'A’ where his batting performances convinced the national team selectors to finally give him a chance. The rest, as they say, is history. “The second turning point was the tri-series in Kenya between India 'A’, Pakistan 'A’, and Kenya. MS Dhoni got an opportunity to play because Dinesh Karthik was joining the national team. There, MS kept the wickets well and for batting don’t even ask! We played against Pak 'A’ twice and he batted so well in the series.”

Saba Karim reveals why Ganguly did not pick Dhoni for Pakistan tour

Further, Karim revealed that he had put words of praises for Dhoni after meeting then India captain Sourav Ganguly. However, he wasn't picked for India's tour of Pakistan in 2004 as Ganguly hadn't seen him play and was unaware of the exploits of Dhoni.

“From there it was a turning point in his career and after that, his name was in the reckoning. I even remember I was in Calcutta at that time, and Sourav (Ganguly) was the captain. I went to meet him and I told him there is this keeper who should come into the Indian team because he was batting so well and was such a safe keeper. Unfortunately, Sourav hadn’t seen MS play just before we toured Pakistan, and he wasn’t selected for that tour. But he was after that," Karim revealed.

Dhoni made his debut later that year against Bangaldesh in December. He toured Pakistan in 2006 under the captaincy of Rahul Dravid. Dhoni was the captain of the Indain team when Ganguly played his last Test match in December November 2008.