Shikhar Dhawan throws his weight behind underfire Rishabh Pant

If there is one Indian cricketer that remains under the spotlight every single day, it is the swashbuckling wicketkeeper-batsman from Delhi, Rishabh Pant. Whether it is his shot selection, his glovework or his Decision Review System calls, the youngster has been under constant scrutiny this year and his form hasn’t helped his cause either.

Pant had another forgettable series against Bangladesh where not only his bat eluded him the runs that he so desperately needs, even his wicket-keeping skills and DRS review form came under the scrutiny. Naturally, the youngster is under enormous pressure and now Shikhar Dhawan has come to lend his support for his fellow Delhi Capitals teammate.

“I keep telling him that don’t see what is being said or written about you in the media. See, the point is that whatever you see or read will come into your mind. I don’t read any newspapers. I have trained myself that way because I know that if I have done well, they will write good things and if I don’t, they will write that. It is a journey. When I started, I also saw, but that is how you learn. Rishabh is a great talent and he will do really well in the long run,” Shikhar said as quoted by Times Now.

We are strong contenders- Shikhar Dhawan

Speaking of Shikhar Dhawan, the southpaw himself is under enormous pressure to keep his place as an opener in the side. During the Bangladesh series, the left-hander struggled to get himself going in the powerplay overs and with KL Rahul doing well in the last game, the southpaw is in danger of losing his opening slot to the Karnataka opener.

In the interview, Dhawan also talked about Team India’s chances in next year’s ICC T20 World Cup in Australia. According to the left-hander, the team us playing a lot of games leading into the quadrennial tournament and will start as strong contenders.

“We are strong contenders. From now onwards we will play so many T20s that we will get refined and be ready for the World T20. I am sure that we will do really well there.”