Shikhar Dhawan reveals how MS Dhoni transformed Rohit Sharma into a legend

Former India National Cricket Team player Shikhar Dhawan opened up about how his partnership with Rohit Sharma started. He revealed that it was MS Dhoni who took his decision and told the current India skipper to open the innings.

The iconic opening pair of Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan enjoyed huge success for India National Cricket Team together in the white-ball cricket. From 2013 to 2022, it was a decade full of dominance as their partnership won many games for the team.

The pair of Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan arguably was one of the finest for the Indian National Cricket Team. They started opening in the ICC Champions Trophy 2013, and for a decade, they didn't look back, scoring truckloads of runs in ODIs as well as T20Is.

Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan opened in 115 ODIs together and scored 5148 runs at an average of 45.55 to go with 18-century partnerships. They only had West Indies' Gordon Greenidge-Desmond Haynes (5150 runs), Australia's Adam Gilchrist-Matthew Hayden (5327 runs), and India's Sachin Tendulkar-Sourav Ganguly (6609 runs) ahead of them in the number of runs scored as pair.

But MS Dhoni took this decision and instructed Rohit to open - Shikhar Dhawan

Shikhar Dhawan, while talking about his opening partnership with Rohit Sharma, said that it was MS Dhoni who took the decision. He said that he always thought that it would be fun opening with Rohit but never thought they would be successful. Speaking to JioHotstar, he said:

“This opening pair decision was made half a day before that match. At that time, I was also new, and I was in my world. I had made a comeback and needed to perform well. But MS Dhoni took this decision and instructed Rohit to open,"

“I thought if Rohit opens, we’ll enjoy batting together. We got such a great start in the first match. We were at 100 without losing a wicket. We didn’t score 30-35 runs up to the 10th over because the wicket was seaming. But I never thought that our pair would be so massive and we would play together for 10 years."

He knows how to work in a pressure situation - Shikhar Dhawan on Rohit Sharma

Shikhar Dhawan also lauded Rohit Sharma as a leader, saying that he has been through a lot and knows how to work under pressure. He stressed that the batter has become mature as a leader, highlighting his bond with the boys. He added:

“From 2013 to 2025, 12 years of experience is a lot. Rohit has been through a lot. He knows how to work in a pressure situation, how to gather the boys," he said.

“As a leader, he has become mature, he knows when to be lenient and when to pull back. It’s a fine balance and Rohit’s bond with the boys is amazing. We are in a great situation."

We trust each other and our understanding and level of communication were very high - Shikhar Dhawan

While further elaborating on the bond with Rohit Sharma, Dhawan said that they trusted each other and their level of communication was very high. He added:

“We trust each other and our understanding and level of communication was very high. On the field and off the field, our bond is the same. We played together; we have partied together after winning so many series. We have played as a team," he said.

“That whole journey and even before playing in India, when Rohit was 16-17 years old, I played in the Under-19 World Cup. So, we have been together and have been friends since then," he added.

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