Virat Kohli’s childhood coach Rajkumar Sharma reckons Shikhar Dhawan was written off by the selectors a bit too soon in the T20I format. Dhawan is not given a chance in the shortest format of the game and he is currently playing only in the ODI version of the game.
The southpaw had scored 168 runs in three matches against the Windies and played at the top of his game. Dhawan scored a fine knock of 97 runs in the first ODI and then contributed with 58 in the third game.
Meanwhile, it is well known that Dhawan has been a consistent performer in the major ICC events. In fact, Dhawan has also improved his strike rate in T20 cricket, which was an issue in the past. The left-hander scored 416 runs in 14 matches while playing for Punjab Kings in TATA IPL 2022. However, Dhawan last played for India in T20Is back in July 2021 when he led against Sri Lanka.
Rajkumar Sharma believes India will now have to stick with the players whom they have given opportunities in the recent past. India has opened with players like Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ishan Kishan, Rishabh Pant and Suryakumar Yadav in the recent past. However, it is expected that the team might back KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma to open the innings in the T20 World Cup later in the year.
During a discussion on India News, Rajkumar Sharma said: “Shikhar Dhawan was written off by the selectors a bit too soon. It was not a good thing. I have always believed that Shikhar is a useful T20 cricketer. But now that the selectors have a scheme of things in place, they need to stick to the players in whom they have shown confidence, be it Ishan Kishan or Ruturaj Gaikwad.”
On the other hand, former Indian all-rounder Reetinder Singh Sodhi has backed Shikhar Dhawan to make a comeback into the T20I format.
“According to me, there is one player who is silently making rapid strides. No one is talking about him for the T20 World Cup. That is Shikhar Dhawan. He cannot be sidelined now. His performance is speaking. He is scoring runs in every game in one-day matches. If KL Rahul doesn’t recover in time, you need an experienced player, so why not Shikhar Dhawan?”
There is no doubt that Dhawan has been performing consistently in white-ball cricket in the last few years but his chances of making it into the T20 World Cup squad are bleak.
