With the T20 World Cup less than three months away and the competition for the opener’s slot heating up, India skipper Shikhar Dhawan has made it plain that he wants to play in the global ICC event. Despite his good record in the shorter format, Dhawan may not be India’s first-choice opener, especially with KL Rahul in the mix.
Dhawan has been in and out of the team, despite scoring 521 and 618 runs in the past two IPLs, including back-to-back hundreds for the Delhi Capitals in 2020. Even still, there’s a chance he won’t be able to make the World Cup XI, and Dhawan is determined to eliminate that option.
“It is very important. Of course, any international match has its own impact, and whenever you perform internationally it makes a huge impact. So, on a personal note, I’m really looking forward to performing over here and make my place stronger for the World Cup contendership. Then we’ll see how it goes in the future,” Dhawan said on the eve of the first T20I in Colombo on Sunday.
Despite the fact that India won the ODI series 2-1, Dhawan stated that the T20I series is a new beginning for the Indian team and that, based on what happened in the three 50-over games, India is not taking Sri Lanka lightly, especially after the hosts won a consolation three-wicket victory on Friday.
I believe the competition will be exciting. In the last two (ODI) matches, you noticed a significant improvement in the Sri Lankan team. They performed admirably and are a solid squad with a lot of young players. We’ve each played three games already, so we’re both familiar with each other’s strengths and shortcomings. That’s a wonderful thing, and it will add to the difficulty, according to Dhawan.
