MS Dhoni was discovered by former Bengal player Prakash Poddar who was sent to Jamshedpur as the BCCI’s representative for talent scouting, small-town talent-spotting initiative headed by Vengsarkar.
Talent Resource Development Wing (TRDW) was started by Karnataka Cricket State Association chair by Makarand Waingankar. The then BCCI president Jagmohan Dalmiya scaled the model to the national level. The other cricketers like Raina and Piyush Chawla were also discovered under this scheme.
“Good striker of the ball; has a lot of power but needs to work on his wicket-keeping. Technically not very good. Is very good at running between wickets.” Poddar while filling recommendation for MS Dhoni.
Poddar represented Bengal for 39 matches ,had dream debut under Pankaj Roy as he notched up 141 runs against Assam in 1960.
Poddar reason out why he recommended MS to NCA in his own words ,
“I felt that if we could regularize the way he used his power, then he would be of some value to Indian cricket,” said Poddar. “And that is why I recommended him to the National Cricket Academy.”
“He scored 35 runs but even in that age kya maarta tha ball ko. He had raw power and I felt that if we could guide him well, he could become a good one-day cricketer,” said Poddar.
He carries on to say with a pause “But who knew he was destined for such greatness.”
The next man who scrutinized MS was Talent Resource Development Wing head Vengsarkar, “Once a player was recommended, I would go and watch him. It was a lot of matches and a lot of hard work but we were all driven by just one thing: to discover the talent that was capable of shining on the international scene”.
The former selector went on to say “There was a lot of talent out there and much of it was flashy. But the deciding factor for me was temperament. If you have that, you will continue to improve,”
Coming back to Bengal man ,he is extremely satisfied to see the growth of MS.
“Today, he is, to my mind, the greatest player India has ever seen. When we consider where he is coming from and where he has reached, there is no one else who compares,” said Poddar. “Even now he seems extremely humble and I am happy that I could play a part – as small as it was.”
“But you can see how hard he has worked. His wicket-keeping is now very solid. Then his footwork behind the wickets wasn’t as good, but now, he knows exactly what he is doing. And his batting – what can I say – it has turned out to be even better than I could imagine.”