Dhawan has taken on the additional responsibilities with confidence: Mahela Jayawardene

Former Sri Lanka skipper Mahela Jayawardene believes Shikhar Dhawan has stood up to the test in the absence of senior cricketers. Meanwhile, India came back strong to beat Bangladesh after a humiliating defeat against Sri Lanka.

Dhawan has led the batting unit from the front with scores of 90 and 55 respectively. However, India needs him to continue his form in the remaining fixtures.

Further, Dhawan has done impeccably well in the tour of South Africa. He along with Virat Kohli led the batting department as India scripted history. Meanwhile, India won their first ever bilateral ODI series in the Rainbow Nation.

Dhawan has stepped up:

Jayawardene feels Dhawan has shouldered the responsibility with great confidence. Further, he also added that India would keep their defeat in the first match going in the next fixture.

“Missing several senior players, Shikhar Dhawan has thus far taken on the additional responsibilities with confidence scoring 90 and 55. In T20 cricket, it’s always helpful when your openers are scoring runs and Dhawan has been pivotal,” Jayawardene wrote in TOI.

“India will go into their third game, against Sri Lanka on Monday, with all to play for in this Nidahas Trophy. Of course, they will be disappointed to have lost to the hosts in their first game, but they recovered well against Bangladesh with a very efficient performance,” he added.

Exciting to watch Perera bat:

Jayawardene lauded Kusal Perera, who was instrumental in Sri Lanka’s win in the series opener. Kusal scored two back-to-back fifties in this series to prove his consistency.

“To Sri Lanka’s credit, Kusal Perera, who has been battling injury and confidence during the past year or so, produced the kind of firecracker innings, 66 from 37 balls, that makes him such an exciting talent in this format. He should be playing such knocks with greater consistency and I hope this innings, coming as it does after an unsettled period in the team, will signal a new phase in his career. On song, he is an extremely talented and destructive player,” wrote Jayawardene.

Meanwhile, Jayawardene mentioned that with rain forecasted for the coming days, it would be interesting to see how it helps the bowlers. Further, he feels it will assist the bowlers with the moisture in the pitch.

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