Mahendra Singh Dhoni receives a memento from Sudesh Mahto in Ranchi on Saturday, as Dhoni’s wife Sakshi and Speaker CP Singh look on. Picture by Prashant Mitra

Ranchi, June 4: It was time to bury the ghosts of the past, celebrate the present and hope for the future. At a felicitation organised by deputy chief minister Sudesh Mahto today, it was Team India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni all the way.

Accompanied by wife Sakshi, who was resplendent in a green sari, parents Pan Singh and Devki Devi, sister Jayanti and brother-in-law Gautam Gupta, Dhoni chose to speak his heart out.

Though smiling, Dhoni recounted how till recently, he was haunted by memories of the 2007 World Cup defeat. Was he referring to the madness unleashed by furious fans who burnt his effigies on the streets of Ranchi four years ago? But the captain with the Midas touch only had praises for the home crowd.

“I am thankful for all the support that I have got from my home crowd,” he said, adding that how immediately after winning the World Cup this year, he wanted to come to Ranchi but could not because of the hectic IPL series that followed.

Congratulating the state government for successfully hosting the 34th National Games in February, Dhoni expressed the hope that his association with Jharkhand would help promote sports in the state.

“I always wanted to do something for sports in this state and I am grateful that the government has agreed to give me land for a state-of-the-art sports academy,” he said. It would be an academy with a holistic approach, honing sporting talent from every field, the captain later said

Today’s ceremony, organised in a hurry, began an hour behind schedule, but once Dhoni started speaking, there were no complaints.

Dhoni was presented a memento and a shawl. And on the eve of World Environment Day, the cricketer was also roped in as the brand ambassador for the state’s green heritage.

And the captain accepted the new responsibility with all humility. “I always want to be associated with this state. I hope that my association will help increase environmental awareness among the people of Jharkhand,” he said.

Among the others present on the occasion were Assembly Speaker C.P. Singh, leader of the Opposition Rajendra Prasad Singh, chief secretary S.K. Choudhary, former chief secretary Shiv Basant, principal secretary with the state forest and environment department A.K. Sarkar and other officials.

“As promised, we are already working to identify land for Dhoni’s sports academy. Work on a proposed sports university at Khel Gaon too is progressing,” said Mahto. He praised Dhoni’s meticulous management skills, both on and off the field. “He isn’t a management graduate but institutes world over are researching his management skills. The entire state is happy that he hails from Ranchi,” Mahto said.

Later interacting with a section of the media, Dhoni said it was good to reach the top but it was hard to maintain the position.