Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni was awarded an honorary doctorate by De Montfort University after the conclusion of a Twenty20 practice match against Leicestershire here yesterday.

Dhoni was praised for his exemplary leadership quality and achievements before he became an Honorary Doctor of Letters at a ceremony here.

Dhoni has achieved many milestones in his career. Under his captaincy, the Indian team won in the 2007 ICC world  twenty20 championships, the 2007-08 Commonwealth Bank one day series and most recently the 2011 cricket World Cup.

He holds records for the most catches in an innings and the longest unbeaten run as a captain. He also holds the award for the fastest century scored by an Indian wicket keeper.

In 2008 and 2009, Dhoni was also named the ICC's one-day international player of the year.

Dhoni is currently captaining the Indian team, which has been whitewashed 0-4 in the just-concluded Test series by England.

The limited overs series will start with a one off Twenty20 match on 31 August.