If India have decided that par score will be 325-350, there is no place for Shikhar Dhawan in the team: Saba Karim

India batter Ishan Kishan has increased the threat for other openers in the national setup with his majestic 210-run  knock against Bangladesh in the third ODI in Chattogram recently. The flamboyant southpaw scored a blistering double-century to power India to a massive win against Bangladesh in the final ODI of the series.

Former India cricketer Saba Karim has opined that the side will not require the services of Shikhar Dhawan if India have 325-350 runs as a par score in their mind in ODIs going ahead. Furthermore, with players like Shubman Gill and Kishan fighting for the top-order spot, Dhawan’s chances to keep his place in the team look slim considering his current form. 

“It will depend on the team management, that what sort of cricket they are wanting to play. If the team management still believes that 275-300 is their aim, then you need Shikhar Dhawan because he is still that kind of a player," said Saba Karim as quoted by News18.

It is a different thing that he has not scored runs in this series. But if you give him an opportunity again and tell him that we have to score 275-300 only, Shikhar Dhawan’s place will be there till the World Cup. But if we have decided that our par score will be 325-350, there is no place for Dhawan," he added.

We are two to three years behind in white-ball cricket: Saba Karim

The former cricketer made a bold statement, stating that Indian team is a couple of years behind in terms of white-ball cricket. He also added that the management will need to bring the likes of fresh faces in order to compete for titles.

"A lot will depend on the selectors and the team management, the captain, and what expectations you have. If you expect that Shikhar Dhawan will play a big knock at a strike rate of 130-140 in a 350-run game, it is not going to happen. I feel in the coming times, we have to achieve a lot.

"I feel we are two to three years behind in white-ball cricket and to get there we will need new players, players like Ishan Kishan, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav, Ruturaj Gaikwad, and Prithvi Shaw," he said.