MS Dhoni, Pankaj Advani conferred with Padma Bhushan

New Delhi [India], April 2 (ANI): Former Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni and star cueist Pankaj Advani on Monday received the coveted Padma Bhushan award from President Ram Nath Kovind at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in the national capital.

Dhoni, who was seen dressed smartly in his official uniform of the Territorial Army for the ceremony, marched to receive the honour while his wife Sakshi proudly cheered for him.

Incidentally, the 36-year-old received the country's third highest civilian award on the same day (April 2) he led Team India to the World Cup glory at Wankhede Stadium way back in 2011, ending the country's 28-year-old wait for the title.

Dhoni, who holds the rank of Honorary Lieutenant Colonel, is the second Indian cricketer after Kapil Dev to be conferred with this coveted award.

Regarded as one of the most successful Indian captains of all time, Dhoni had led India to 2007 T20I World Cup victory before later guiding the side to 2011 World Cup and 2013 Champions Trophy.

Dhoni bid adieu to Test cricket in 2014 before stepping down from limited-overs captaincy in January 2017, thus handing the captaincy across all formats to Virat Kohli.

Advani, on the other hand, is also considered as the best snooker player to have ever come out of the country.

The cueist, who recently claimed the IBSF World Snooker Championship- his 18th world title, has bagged a total of 19 titles, including winning gold twice at the Asian Games in 2006 and 2010. (ANI)