After the series win over West Indies, India skipper MS Dhoni has entered the league of extraordinary captains.

By Rajesh Kumar

With nine victories (and only three defeats) in the 12 result-oriented ODIs played by India in 2009 - four against Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka, three against New Zeland in New Zealand and two against West Indies in the Caribbean - Mahendra Singh Dhoni is now the most successful Indian captain in ODIs, enjoying a success rate of 66 per cent - Played 55, Won 33, Lost 17 and No Result 5.

Amongst the Indian skippers with minimum of 50 ODIs as captain, only five have recorded a winning percentage of 50 or more - Dhoni (66%), Rahul Dravid (56), Kapil Dev (54.16), Mohammad Azharuddin (54.16) and Sourav Ganguly (53.52).

Apart from his winning rate as captain, Dhoni is also the only captain (minimum 2,000 runs) to have recorded a batting average of 50 in ODIs - 2090 at an average of 59.71, including one century and 17 fifties. Pakistan's Inzamam-ul-Haq has the next best average - 2809 (avg 43.89) in 90 matches.

The top five Indian captains in ODIs:
(Minimum qualification: 50 ODIs)