I Still Feel Indian Team Needs Shikhar Dhawan: Rajkumar Sharma On Dhawan's Exclusion From T20I Team

Rajkumar Sharma, Virat Kohli’s childhood coach, has questioned Shikhar Dhawan’s exclusion from the Indian T20I squad.

For the forthcoming T20I series against South Africa, Dhawan has been left out of India’s 18-man team. In addition, Rahul Dravid is said to have informed him that he is no longer a part of the Indian team’s plans for the shorter version of the game.

I’m Surprised That He Is Not Part Of The Team: Rajkumar Sharma

Speaking on India News, he said, “I am slightly surprised. I still feel the Indian team needs him [Dhawan], he is an opening batter and gives the left-right combination. And the way he bats, his strike rate is always good. If you give him a role, he definitely works on it because he is a good student of the game and a good team man.”

According to the former Ranji cricketer, Dhawan’s expertise might aid India’s case in the T20 World Cup later this year. He added: “The World Cup is around the corner and we need his experience there and he is a batter who when he plays, wins you the match. I was expecting that he will be there in the World Cup as well.”

“If a player is performing well for you along with experience, he is more useful, unless you have got a replacement who has done exceptionally well, that you have to surely keep that player and the other player is out of form.

“I didn’t see anything like that with Shikhar. He has looked in fantastic form, just going by his age is not correct”, he further said.

Dhawan scored 460 runs at an average of 38.33 in the IPL 2022 for the Punjab Kings (PBKS). However, his 122.66 strike rate and the scarcity of available positions at the top of the Indian T20I order may have worked against him.

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