Shikhar Dhawan has found it tough to find the runs since making his comeback from injury. In the recent limited-over series in the West Indies, he managed just 65 runs in three T20Is and two ODIs.
A few days ago, in the first T20I against South Africa, the southpaw ran into some form, making a 31-ball 40. “I didn’t score much in West Indies, but I was middling the ball nicely. For me it is normal when four-five innings don’t go to plan, because I know my process is very strong,” Dhawan said here on Saturday.
Dhawan praised new ball bowlers Washington Sundar and Deepak Chahar for their good show at Mohali. Off-spinner Washington conceded 19 runs in three neat though wicketless overs, and Chahar impressed with figures of two for 22.
“Washington bowled well. He chokes the batsmen. In the previous game, he did very well to give just one run in the fifth over. He has very good control and variety,” Dhawan said,
“Chahar can swing the ball both ways. It is good to have fresh pairs of legs. This is the perfect platform for them to perform and build their confidence for the 2020 T20 World Cup.”
Helping younger guys
On his role as a senior member of the team, Dhawan said, “We seniors have to communicate and calm the nerves of the younger guys. Any time a youngster wants to talk, we are always open.”
The big goal is to build a good group of players for the ICC T20 World Cup, to be held in Australia in October next year. “Whatever we want to achieve at the World Cup, we are already practising now.
“So by the time we reach the World Cup, we will know our roles with great clarity. The team management is trying out youngsters, which is good.
Confident
“Their confidence level is already high, because they have played with and against international players in the IPL. For example, in the last match, you could see from Shreyas Iyer’s body language that his confidence is high. I’m sure that the team management will give the youngsters a long run,” he said.
South African batsman Rassie van der Dussen stated that it would help that some of his teammates have played at the M. Chinnaswamy here during the IPL. “We have talked to guys who have played here before. We’ve watched AB (de Villers) play here; he is a massive name here. We know there will be a high boundary percentage here,” van der Dussen said.
