Mr. ICC Shikhar Dhawan celebrates his 38th birthday today. The stylish southpaw has had an incredible career, performing for the India Cricket Team in all three formats of the game. The big match player has still not called it a day and continues to perform on the domestic circuit as well as in the IPL.
Dhawan was India’s highest scorer in the Champions Trophy in 2013 and 2017, as well as the World Cup in 2015. So, here are five of Shikhar Dhawan’s most iconic innings:
Score/Knock | Opposition | Year & Venue | Format |
---|---|---|---|
187 | Australia | 2013 & Mohali | Test |
137 | South Africa | 2015 & Melbourne | ODI |
114 | South Africa | 2013 & Cardiff | ODI |
117 | Australia | 2019 & London | ODI |
92 | West Indies | 2018 & Chennai | T20I |
Shikhar Dhawan’s 5 most iconic innings
187 vs Australia
Dhawan was originally not supposed to play, but due to a poor showing with the bat, he replaced Sehwag in the third test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Mohali. The southpaw played in his naturally aggressive style and made the fastest hundred by a debutant in Test history in just 85 balls. The southpaw, however, missed the double hundred by just 13 runs and couldn’t bat in the second inning due to an injury. After 10 years, the record still stands.
137 vs South Africa
Playing in his second ODI World Cup match, the opener notched up his maiden World Cup century. Batting first, Dhawan played the role of the anchor, scoring 137 off 146 balls while others batted around him. His knock propelled India to an incredible score of 307, with him scoring around 45% of the team’s total runs.
117 vs Australia
This proved to be Shikhar Dhawan’s final ICC knock, and boy did he go out with a bang. Despite suffering an injury blow, the batter decided to play through pain and score yet another century. His valiant 117-run knock took India past 350 and won the match comfortably. However, the fatal blow he suffered saw him miss the remainder of the 2019 World Cup and ended his dream.
114 vs South Africa
The knock with which he announced himself to the world. Playing in his first ICC event match, Dhawan scored a fast-paced 114-run knock off 94 balls. The left-hander played the role of aggressor, while Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli batted around him. By the time he went out, India had already scored 227 runs with 75 balls still left. His knock proved to be the deciding factor, as he remained the lone centurion in the match.
92 vs West Indies
His highest score in T20Is came during his prime time. Chasing an above-par total of 182, Dhawan scored more than 50% of the target alone in just 62 balls. The opener remained on the crease for 119 of the 120 balls, getting out just the second last ball of the match. His efforts saw him receive the ‘Man of the Match’ award, and the India Cricket Team claimed a 3-0 series win.