His habit of being openly critical about teammates has raised quite a few eyebrows, but Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni insists there is nothing wrong in being "transparent" if it ends up getting good results for the side.
"I am a transparent person. Whatever happens on the field... I just repeat it at the press conference. There is nothing confidential about it," Dhoni told NDTV, when asked about his critical comments against his own players when they have a bad day on the field.
"More importantly I have a good rapport with my team, they respond well to me and that is why they understand me. After the end of every match I speak to them," he said.
Describing himself as a funny captain, Dhoni said he loves his teammates.
"I am funny, sarcastic and aggressive. Not very vocal but can be if I am angry and I love my teammates," he said.
Refusing to rate himself as skipper, Dhoni said he only gets worried when things don't go as planned.
"I am not really supposed to rate myself... As long as everything is fine and we are winning, it's fine. But the problem starts when we don't do well. Then we come under lot of scrutiny. But that's how it is... till everything is OK, then good enough," he said.
Dhoni, who led the team to their ODI tri-series triumph in Australia, said the three-month tour Down Under was a test for youngsters and they passed with flying colours.
"It is very special beating Australia in Australia. A lot was said about them and how tough they are in big matches like finals. But it was good to see our youngsters taking up the responsibility. I hope we get a few easy outings now but jokes apart nothing is easy in international cricket," he said.
Lavishing praise on the youngsters, Dhoni said having them makes the team stable for future.
"It leads to a stable team. You get a bunch that will stick around when you have youngsters on board. Like say, Praveen (Kumar) and Piyush (Chawla). Both are very talented and would be there for a long time," he explained.
On the off-field controversies that plagued Harbhajan Singh in Australia, Dhoni said no matter what was written about the off spinner, he remained a match-winner and an asset for the team.
"I don't think there was anything he did wrong. Everyday there was something about him in the papers. They used to call him the controversial Indian off spinner here, which is quite funny and I pointed that out a couple of days ago," he said.
"He has matured. He is an aggressive player but I think he is a great character and an asset for the team. He keeps the dressing room alive. He plays to win. I respect him a lot and I think so should others," he added.
The Indian skipper also made light of incidents of of poor behaviour from the Australian side.
"It's OK if a few things go around. We are used to it. You have to sort it on the field. It is in the best interest of the teams if we deal with such things on field only," he said.
On the upcoming cash-rich Indian Premier League, where he fetched the highest bid of Rs 6 crore, Dhoni hoped that the money would not divert players from national duty.
"I can buy 1000 bikes with that money. But jokes apart, how much money do you need in life? I have enough money to live a comfortable life. I have a nice job. So it depends what you want in life. If you want Ferraris in your garage then you need money but I think playing for your country is more important," he said.
