'Shikhar Dhawan has been a serious player' - Ravi Shastri lauds the senior Indian batter after his match-winning knock vs CSK

Indian and Punjab Kings (PBKS) opener Shikhar Dhawan was adjudged player of the match for his excellent knock of 88 runs against the defending champions Chennai Super Kings in a group stage match of IPL 2022 at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai on April 25. It may be noted that PBKS lost their skipper Mayank Agarwal early, but the senior Indian batter alongside Bhanuka Rajapaksa stitched an excellent partnership of 110 runs.

After the departure of Rajapaksa, Dhawan along with England batters Liam Livingstone and Jonny Bairstow ensured that the Punjab Kings finish on an above-par score of 187/4 runs in their allotted 20 overs. As a result, the Yellow Army failed to chase down the target as they fell short by 11 runs. Meanwhile, former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri has lauded Dhawan and has said that he is getting better with each day.

Shastri was happy to see Dhawan taking calculated risks and the way he spoke in the post-match presentation ceremony about the thought process to play a big knock.

Dhawan is seeing what is his role as a batter: Ravi Shastri

Speaking to Star Sports Ravi Shastri said, “He (Dhawan) is seeing what the pitch had to offer, he is seeing what his role was.. his shot-selection, playing around with the fields, choosing the right bowlers to hit and the reason why I said he spoke beautifully (at the post-match presentation ceremony) was that it showed his thought process.”

“This man (Shikhar Dhawan) has been a serious player, you know, right in between them when he has been fit and he deserves all the accolades… 6000 IPL runs, 200th (IPL) game, man-of-the-match, finishing it off in style and like he said he has started advising youngsters now.. and I know Shikhi…he might be calling them and playing the flute. I hope he plays the flute for a long time,” Shastri added.

Talking about Dhawan’s numbers in IPL, the 36-year-old has played 200 matches and has scored a total of 6085 runs at an average of almost 35. The left-handed batter has stroked 46 fifties and has two centuries as well. Dhawan has also represented India in 149 ODIs and 68 T20Is.