Former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri heaped praise on opener Shikhar Dhawan and said that Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma got all the attention despite the fact that the opener deserved equal applause, especially for his performances in the ODIs.
Dhawan has always been one of the top performers for Team India in white-ball cricket, but people always liked talking about Kohli and Rohit’s batting show. Well, the veteran left-hander is now only part of India’s ODI team and continues to impress one and all with his performances with the bat.
He is currently lcaptaining the Indian team in the three-match ODI series against New Zealand, and in the first ODI that is being played at Eden Park on Friday (November 25), the stylish batter smashed a stunning fifty (72) to help the tourists post 306/7 in 50 overs against the Black Caps.
Meanwhile, Shastri said that Dhawan does not get the accolades that he really deserves, as he was lauding the opener’s stylish batting and his batting records in ODI cricket.
Ravi Shastri said during pre-match coverage of Prime Video for the 1st ODI: “He's vastly experienced. He doesn't get the accolades that he deserves. To be honest, most of the spotlight is on Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. But when you look at his one-day cricket record, and you look at some of the innings he has played against top teams in big games, it's an outstanding record.”
He added, “A left-hander at the top makes a lot of difference. He is a natural stroke player, he has got all the shots to countertop class fast bowling, the pull, the cut, and the drive. He likes it when the ball is coming onto the bat, and I think his experience will be handy here. There are a lot of talented youngsters around, but I think in this format of the game, his experience will be in value.”
Apart from Dhawan, Shubman Gill (50) and Shreyas Iyer (80) also scored significantly in the first ODI.
(With Amazon Prime Video Inputs)
