Shikhar Dhawan

Shikhar Dhawan got into reckoning through his under-19 performances in the year 2004, where he scored 505 runs with three centuries to his name. An aggressive left-handed opening batsman, Dhawan had a difficult time breaking into the Indian team because of the competition at the top of the order.

After a string of excellent performances in the domestic arena, Dhawan was handed his India  debut in an ODI against Australia in 2010. He scored a duck in his maiden ODI innings and was cleaned up by Clint McKay. 

Dhawan was a fringe player for team India for the next three years, and it wasn’t until the 2013 Border-Gavaskar Trophy, that the world witnessed the real Shikhar Dhawan. Regular choice opener, Virender Sehwag was removed from the squad after the second Test match, and Dhawan was given the opportunity to prove his worth in the third Test at Mohali. The southpaw didn’t disappoint as he smashed the Australian bowlers all around the park and raced away to the fastest ever hundred on a Test debut (85 balls). He was eventually dismissed for a well compiled 187 as India defeated the Aussies comfortably.

His stock continued to rise in the ICC Champions Trophy 2013, where the dashing opener was declared the player of the tournament. He accumulated 363 runs in five innings, which included two centuries as well. 

When Australia came to India in October 2013, Dhawan continued to torment them, as he slammed a century and two fifties in the five match series.

He finished the calendar year as the highest run-getter for India in the ODI format. 

Dhawan was brought back to reality in the two away tours of South Africa and England, where he struggled outside the off stump and his technical flaws were clearly visible to the opposition bowlers. However, he still managed to score his maiden away Test century against New Zealand in Auckland.

Dhawan was selected in India’s Test squad for the 2014/15 Border-Gavaskar Trophy. He did not get any significant score in the series, and was dropped from the series mid-way.

However, Dhawan the white-ball player is cut from a different cloth altogether. He was in India’s squad for the 2015 World Cup, and he registered his first World Cup ton against South Africa at the MCG. He scored a skilful 137 as India registered a thumping victory over the Proteas. He was the highest-run getter for India in the tournament, as the team reached the semifinals of the World Cup.

Following the World Cup, Dhawan made his way back into the Test setup, and marked his return with a majestic 173 against Bangladesh in their own backyard.

He followed it up with a blistering ton against Sri Lanka in the first Test of the series at Galle. With this knock, he became only the third opener after Sunil Gavaskar and Rahul Dravid to slam back-to-back hundreds in away Tests. During the same Test, he fractured his right hand and was ruled out of the remainder of the series.

At the start of 2016, Dhawan scored a gutsy hundred against Australia. He registered 126 runs of a mere 113 deliveries, but his efforts were in vain as India lost the ODI match.

He was in and out of the ODI side due to injury, but was part of India’s squad for the Champions Trophy 2017. He marked his return with a well compiled 68 of just 65 balls against Pakistan, as India started the tournament on a winning note.

In a group stage match against Sri Lanka, Dhawan scored his third Champions Trophy century, and in the process became the fourth person to register three or more tons in the tournament, alongside Chris Gayle, Sourav Ganguly and Herschelle Gibbs.

Post the Champions Trophy 2017, India toured Sri Lanka and Dhawan was the highest run-scorer in the series with 358 runs, including two centuries. In the same year, he registered his then highest-T20I score of 80 off just 52 deliveries as India cruised past the Kiwis in that match.

In the away series against South Africa in 2018, Dhawan played his 100th ODI match and scored his 13th ODI century. In the process, he became the first Indian player to score a ton in his 100th ODI. He scored 323 runs in the series as India won 5-1. 

Dhawan reached another milestone in 2018, when he scored a hundred before the lunch break against Afghanistan. He became the only Indian and sixth overall to score a century before lunch on the first day of a Test match.

He was a part of India’s World Cup squad in 2019. Dhawan slammed his 17th ODI century in a group stage match against Australia. He suffered a thumb injury before that match and was eventually ruled out of the entire tournament. 

In the IPL, he was picked by the Delhi Capitals (then Delhi Daredevils)  based on his swashbuckling skills and strong domestic performance. 

In the first edition of the IPL, Dhawan rose through the ranks in the star-studded Delhi Daredevils (DD) line up that then comprised Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, AB De Villiers and Tillakaratne Dilshan. He was given the responsibility of holding the innings together at the all-important number 3 spot and Dhawan did justice to the trust shown on him by the team management poling up 340 runs from 10 matches. 

However, the stint was cut short as DC decided to move on from him that took Dhawan into the Mumbai Indians (MI) camp. He was asked to open but he could not quite manage to hold on to his opening position and soon lost his way in the Sachin Tendulkar-led team scoring 20 runs from 5 matches in the 2009 edition and 191 runs from 10 innings in the 2010 edition.  The move to the then Deccan Chargers (now Sunrisers Hyderabad) proved to be resurgent for Dhawan who bounced back with his admirable stroke playing and consistency. Dhawan amassed more than 400 runs each for four seasons and proved to be a crucial element of the Sunrisers success in the league. Sunrisers traded Dhawan with DC before the IPL 2020, and he repaid Delhi’s faith with back-to-back tons, as the destructive opener amassed 618 runs at a strike rate of 144.73, and took Delhi Capitals to their maiden IPL final. Ahead of the IPL 2021, Dhawan is retained by DC. He’ll look forward to giving valuable impetus at the start of the innings and if he succeeds, Delhi Capitals will give teams a run for their money in the upcoming IPL. Dhawan is clearly India’s go to man in the ICC tournaments. No player relishes the big stage more than Dhawan, who has scored daddy hundreds in the World Cups and in the Champions Trophy tournament. Dhawan has had a great international career so far. Now, at the twilight of his career, he’ll look to bounce back and get his place back in the T20I squad ahead of the World Cup in 2021. (As of March 2021)