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"We are sorry for what happened but we can say we gave our best," Dhoni told a news conference after losing to England by three wickets before thousands of Indian supporters at Lord's cricket ground in London.
"We had experienced guys who can handle the pressure. It was a day when nothing much worked for us."
"India is an emotional country," Dhoni said, adding: "We are more disappointed than them (Indian fans)."
But Dhoni denied repeated suggestions at the press conference that Indian players were exhausted from playing too many matches in the Indian Premier League (IPL).
"You can't blame it on tiredness. It's not an excuse," the Indian skipper said, adding playing more matches was better for players. "It is a demanding format because you play at different venues. It's not like you play three or four games at the same point," he said.
"If you see me and say he's not giving his hundred percent then hold me responsible. Performance is a different matter."
"We didn't really perform well as a team."
Dhoni, however, admitted that he was failing to fire his guns while batting, having scored only three boundaries and not a single six in a knock of 30 on Sunday that was relatively sedate by his explosive standards.
"I'm not comfortably clearing the park - that's for sure. I'm working hard on it, and hopefully I'll be back with hitting sixes."
Dhoni said he elected to field after winning the toss because the wicket plays "a bit better" under the lights.
He gave credit to England's battery of pace bowlers, who fired a steady stream of short-pitched shoulder-high balls at the Indian batsmen, working to a game plan.
"Their bowlers started well. They were aggressive and used the bouncer and the short ball well," Dhoni said.
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