Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid backed me but Shubman Gill lived up to their expectations: Shikhar Dhawan

Considered as one of India’s mainstays in ODIs, Shikhar Dhawan lost his place to Shubman Gill in January following a dip in his form.

With the 50-over World Cup later this year, Dhawan revealed that captain Rohit Sharma and coach Rahul Dravid backed him and urged him to focus on the ICC event. The veteran India opener added that he fell out of the team due to a dip in his form and the consistency of Shubman Gill.

“When Rohit took over the captaincy he along with Rahul Dravid backed me enough. They told me they wanted me to focus on my cricket and that my vision should be the next World Cup,” Dhawan told Aaj Tak.

“2022 was very good for me, I was consistent in ODIs. But there is this young guy who has been doing well in two formats, and when my form dipped in a series or two then they gave a chance to Shubman and he has lived up to their expectations.”

Dhawan added that he got scared when Ishan Kishan hit an ODI double century against Bangladesh last year as he thought he could be out of the team.

“We are used to such situation. When Ishan Kishan slammed a double century against Bangladesh, then for a moment I thought I could be out of the team,” said Dhawan.

Dhawan, who last played an ODI in December 2022, stressed that his situation is not new in cricket as several cricketers have met with a similar fate. He also said that when the team management takes such a decision they put in a lot of thought.

“This is not something new in cricket. Or this happened just with me, plenty others have met with same fate. There are times when you play well throughout the year and then your form drops for one month or two, sometimes that becomes bigger than your performance throughout the year. When a captain, coach and selector take a decision they put plenty of thoughts into it,” said Dhawan.

Dhawan will lead Punjab Kings in the upcoming IPL 2023. Punjab Kings will begin their campaign against Kolkata Knight Riders on April 1 in Mohali.