India’s stylish left-handed batter, who smashed many world-class bowlers with a smile on his face and played elegantly while utilizing the entire field, has now called it a day. Shikhar Dhawan has announced his retirement from international and domestic cricket after playing over 250 matches and scoring 10,867 runs. His ability to dominate teams like Australia and South Africa was Dhawan’s USP.
But do you know why he has been known as “Mr. ICC”? He started opening in ODIs in 2013 after Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir were sidelined, and he made a significant impact during the 2013 Champions Trophy. However, this is not the only reason he earned the nickname “Mr. ICC.” Let’s take a closer look at this in detail.
Why Shikhar Dhawan is called ‘Mr ICC’
To answer this question, it’s extremely simple. In the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy, Shikhar Dhawan was the highest run-scorer with 363 runs, and rightly so, as he was the main reason India clinched the trophy. His performances in the group stage were phenomenal.
Then came the 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup—another big tournament for a big player. Dhawan ended up as India’s leading run-scorer in the World Cup, amassing 412 runs in eight matches, including two centuries. One of these centuries came against South Africa, where he scored 137 runs, helping India secure a victory by 130 runs. He also scored a run-a-ball 100 against Ireland.
In the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy, Dhawan again topped the batting charts with 338 runs. This consistent game in major ICC tournaments was enough for him to earn the title of ‘Mr. ICC.’