India are preparing hard for the ODI World Cup slated to be played later this year. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has already shortlisted around 20 players for the quadrennial showpiece event. India’s legendary batter in the format, Shikhar Dhawan who was in the scheme of things till last year has been suddenly ousted from the setup. The selectors have preferred a younger crop of players like Shubman Gill and Ishan Kishan in the 50-over format.
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However, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have successfully retained their places in the ODI setup. Now, R Ashwin has talked about Shikhar Dhawan’s contribution towards the holistic development of the Indian ODI team. The veteran spinner also talked about the void that has been created by the departure of Dhawan. Ashwin pointed out that Dhawan has not received the right amount of appreciation.
"Only when the Top 3 failed, we had problems in the past. Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli. We talk a lot about Rohit and Kohli, but Dhawan is a stalwart. He was silently doing his job. Will his place be a big void to fill for Team India?," Ashwin said on his YouTube Channel.
“Should we go back to Shikhar Dhawan, or should we groom Ishan Kishan, who has just scored a double hundred? Instead of backing a player on the basis of one huge score, we should see what the team requires. Which character will deliver under pressure? Which character will serve us for a long time?”
“Ishan Kishan was dropped after a double hundred, but Team India has seen Shubman Gill’s run in the past. He has scored hefty runs and has been the most consistent batter for the team over a period of time. He also plays the slog sweep and the traditional sweep, can cut and pull pacers. Smart batting, quality batting and acceleration towards the end. He accelerated beautifully in the last four overs and hit that 200 in the Hyderabad ODI,” Ashwin added.
