As India head into a world cup year, a number of players will try to put up a strong case to get selected in the final squad of 15. One of them is veteran batter Shikhar Dhawan who hasn’t been in the best of forms lately. The left-hander had a horrendous Bangladesh tour where he struggled to score in double figures. In three innings, Dhawan managed scores of 7, 8, and 3, respectively, scoring just 18 runs in total.
Since the youngsters like Shubman Gill and Ishan Kishan are already making the most of whatever opportunities they have been getting, the road ahead for Dhawan won’t be easy if he doesn’t get among scoring ways immediately.
India’s next ODI assignment is against Sri Lanka at home, and it has to be seen if Dhawan gets another chance, especially after what Kishan did against Bangladesh in the 3rd ODI. The 24-year-old registered the fastest double hundred in ODIs, scoring a 210 off just 131 deliveries with the help of 24 boundaries and 10 sixes.
Spots are limited and contenders are too many. In that case, Dhawan could be the first one to be sidelined. Veteran India wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik too feels that the opener might experience a sad end to his career.
“For the Sri Lanka series, where does Dhawan stand? It is going to be interesting to see how they are going to leave out Ishan Kishan. Shubman Gill has been doing so well. If Rohit Sharma is available, somebody has to miss out. It could well be him (Dhawan). That could be a sad end to a glorious career. But some questions to answer for the new selectors,” Karthik told Cricbuzz.
The wicketkeeper-batter strongly believes that had Shubman Gill been in the squad, he would have definitely got the opportunity ahead of Dhawan.
“Interestingly, if Shubman Gill had been part of the squad, he would have probably opened because he has been doing it for some time with aplomb. Ishan Kishan, given an opportunity, has taken it with both hands. This is going to put Shikhar Dhawan in a fix,” he added.
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Karthik further heaped praise on Ishan who displayed a great example of fearless batting and his hunger for scoring runs.
“It’s very nice to see someone coming out and being honest with the fact that, ‘you know what, I could have got a 300 if I had batted, but it didn’t happen’. Also shows his hunger. He has been walking that thin line with a few of the keepers being part of it and hence not getting that opportunity. Now, he has pushed that door and said, ‘I am ready. Are you going to look at me?’”
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