ICC T20 World Cup 2021: Will Shikhar Dhawan get a place in India’s World Cup 11? See what Ajit Agarkar says.
ICC T20 World Cup 2021: The Indian skipper for the upcoming Sri Lanka tour, Shikhar Dhawan will have a hard time regaining his lost position in India’s T20I playing11, especially, after the rise of dashing KL Rahul, says former Indian pacer Ajit Agarkar.
The growth of KL Rahul in the T20Is has overshadowed the brilliance of Shikhar Dhawan in the format. The case gets worse as KL Rahul has the huge backing of Indian regular skipper Virat Kohli.
Ajit Agarkar feels that even if Shikhar Dhawan plunders hefty runs in the Sri Lanka series, it will be a tough job for him to earn Virat’s backing and an opening place in India’s T20I playing11.
“It’s a curious case. You almost felt like Rahul & Rohit have overtaken him but Shikhar keeps getting runs. So, he keeps the pressure on those two. Look, he has to get runs. I think he will have to put up scores. As a player, you can only do this much. I don’t know how much of a say the performance in Sri Lanka will have in team selection for T20 World Cup, all he can do is put pressure on the guys ahead of him,” Ajit Agarkar said at a virtual presser for the India Tour of Sri Lanka organised by official broadcaster Sony Sports.
In the presence of Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul and Virat Kohli putting their names for the opening slot, Dhawan is unlikely to get noticed.
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Earlier this year, following consecutive failures from KL Rahul and Shikhar Dhawan against England in the T20I series, Virat himself stepped up and showed interest in opening the innings with Rohit Sharma.
The captain and vice-captain duo even opened in the last T20I and stitched a good runs partnership before the fall of the first wicket.
Agarkar further said that Dhawan is doing everything right, while it’s about scoring runs or stitching partnerships, but the names ahead of him have blocked his way to the opening slot.
“He was in the first T20I against England and was dropped after that one failure. He made a comeback in the ODI series against England and did well. He already has two really encouraging IPLs. He is not doing anything wrong. Unfortunately, he didn’t play in the England series. So, he couldn’t make a case. But I feel KL Rahul is ahead of him and Rohit being the vice-captain will pick himself. Although Rahul has had an average series, he has been excellent in white-ball cricket. That makes it difficult for Shikhar,” Ajit Agarkar said.
ICC T20 World Cup 2021: Will Shikhar Dhawan get a place in India’s World Cup 11? See what Ajit Agarkar says.