CARDIFF : Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni today received the ICC Shield for finishing as the No. 1 ODI team in the Championship table on the April 1, 2013 cut-off date.
In a simple ceremony at the Swalec Stadium here, former ICC president David Morgan presented Dhoni a silver salver and a cheque for USD 175,000.
The brief ceremony took place a few metres away from where the Indians were training ahead of tomorrow’s warm-up match against Australia here.
Cheered by a couple of players and members of the team management, Dhoni looked happy to receive the award from the former ICC boss.
India (119 points) still retain the top spot going into the Champions Trophy starting on June 6. Australia (116) and South Africa (113) are No. 2 and No. 3, respectively.
It was a “vision only” opportunity for the handful of media, covering India’s practice session on a sunny morning.
Dhoni was not allowed to speak but his reactions clearly reflected his mood at receiving the prestigious trophy going into the last Champions Trophy that brings the top eight nations in world cricket playing the 50-over format.
Dhoni happily posed for a small group of cameramen.
Considering the show that the ICC normally makes for such kinds of awards, this one was rather lacklustre. Dhoni was ‘off-limits’ for the media as the recent happening in Indian cricket only made him difficult to get.
In a brief message to the media, Dhoni just said: “This one belongs to the team, not me alone,” before walking off into the dressing room. (AGENCIES)
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