Former India opening batsman Krishnamachari Srikkanth on Sunday said that if we’re among the selectors, he would not pick Shikhar Dhawan ahead of KL Rahul for the upcoming World T20.
Dhawan is making a comeback to the team for the Sri Lanka T20 series after an injury layoff, and while he was away, Rahul played well as a second fiddle to Rohit Sharma at the top, which has now put Dhawan’s place in the team in doubt.
“Runs against SL (Sri Lanka) don’t count. If I was chairman of selectors, I won’t pick Dhawan in the T20 WC squad. There is no competition between him and Rahul. Only one winner,” Srikkanth said.
Dhawan said that he is looking forward to a “new start” in 2020 and wants to deliver the results in Australia. “Lots of injuries last year, but it’s part and parcel of the game. It’s a new year, looking forward to a new start. I always take things in a positive manner. Injuries are natural, just take them in my stride. Looking forward to scoring lots of runs this year, be a more impactful player, win matches for my team and win the World Cup. This series is a good opportunity for me to score runs. I am always developing my game, developing new shots,” Dhawan said in Guwahati.
Ever since the ICC ODI World Cup 2019, the southpaw has not been in the kind of form expected of him. In his last 12 T20 innings, Dhawan has scored only 272 runs. The Karnataka opening batsman, on the other hand, 356 runs in nine innings at a strike rate of 142.
While Rohit Sharma and Dhawan are known as one of the best opening partners in the world, KL Rahul too complemented Sharma well at the top, but the left-right combination was something fans were missing. It remains to be seen how well Dhawan fares in the Sri Lanka series.
