Sunil Gavaskar heaped rich praise on Shikhar Dhawan, saying it was heartening to see the senior opener forget the chatter around his form and age and deliver in the first ODI against England on Tuesday.
Shikhar Dhawan, 35, lost his place in the T20I side after playing just one game during the 5-match series against England in Ahmedabad. Dhawan is no longer a regular in the Test squad but his ODI numbers have been impressive. However, with quite a few young openers waiting in the wings, there is pressure on Dhawan to keep delivering in his favourite format.
Before the start of the ODI series, Dhawan got the backing of captain Virat Kohli who insisted that the team management will persist with the left-hander along with Rohit Sharma as openers in the 50-over format of the game.
Dhawan repaid the faith that the team management showed in him by hitting a match-winning 98 off 106 balls in the ODI series opener in Pune on Tuesday. Dhawan kept the scoreboard moving even as India lost Rohit early and stitched a crucial 100-plus stand with captain Kohli. Dhawan missed his 18th ODI hundred by just 2 runs but he top-scored for India as they sealed a comfortable 66-run win against the world champions.
“Also, to have Rohit Sharma with whom he had terrific partnerships around would have been of great help,” he added.
Gavaskar also pointed out that Dhawan grew in confidence as he spent more time in the middle against a top-quality England attack. The left-hander was at his elegant best, hitting 11 boundaries and 2 sixes during the match-winning knock. Dhawan was able to put the fast bowlers away and he took the attack to England spinners in the middle overs. He stamped his authority with an inside-out six against Moeen Ali which seems to have impressed the batting great.
“This time around Rohit was not as fluent as he normally is. Shikhar took the initiative to keep the scoreboard moving. Once he middled a few shots, his confidence returned. His confidence was sky-high after that and then he started playing shots that we know he is capable of.
“That lofted six over extra-cover of Moeen Ali was a terrific shot,” he added.
“Good to see somebody who works hard, somebody who the captain said is a fine team man, succeed.”
