COLOMBO, July 14: Handed captaincy for the Sri Lanka tour, Shikhar Dhawan’s idea of leadership is all about keeping the flock together and in a good state of mind. The left-handed opener was given the reins of the team after Virat Kohli and other key players were sent to England for the WTC Final against New Zealand and the five-Test series against the hosts.
Sri Lanka’s limited overs tour, comprising of three ODIs and as many T20s, will begin on July 18 in Colombo.
“It is a big achievement for me that I have become the captain of the Indian side. As a leader, my idea is to keep everyone together and happy – that is the most important thing,” Dhawan said on Star Sports show ‘Follow the Blues’.
“We have got a lovely bunch of boys, great support staff, and we have worked earlier as well.”
Dhawan says he shares a good chemistry with legendary Rahul Dravid, who is the head coach for the series.
The selectors have picked many uncapped players, including the likes of Ruturaj Gaikwad and Chetan Sakariya, and Dhawan wants the youngsters to enjoy their journey.
“Happy to get the youngsters in the team and see their dreams come true. It’s a big thing that these youngsters have come from their respective home towns with certain dreams, and their dreams are getting fulfilled,” he said.
Dhawan said that both the seniors and youngsters from the squad will learn from each other.
Half a dozen debut hopes
Though team coach Dravid has said that India’s limited-overs tour of Sri Lanka may not throw up many new options for the T20 World Cup, scheduled to be held in October-November, it may still prove to be a platform for some youngsters to cement their places in the India team in near future.
Here is a look at six players, who we may be seen in India colours:
Devdutt Padikkal: The left-handed opening batsman scored 737 runs at an average of 147.4 in the Vijay Hazare one-dayers. He also impressed in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020 – 473 runs in 15 matches and in IPL 2021 – 195 runs in six matches.
He is the favourite to take over the opening slot from Dhawan, once the Delhi left-hander retires. Almost everyone speaks highly of his ability to score runs.
Ruturaj Gaikwad: The Maharashtra batsman has been picked for his performances in the IPL and due to the backing of former Indian team and current Chennai Super Kings skipper MS Dhoni.
He scored three fifties in six IPL 2020 matches and two fifties in seven IPL 2021 matches. But his returns in other domestic competitions were ordinary. He may get only limited chances at best.
Nitish Rana: The Delhi left-hander has been a vital part of the Kolkata Knight Riders side, even opening for them although he was brought up as a middle-order batsman.
He has been in great form of late not just in IPL but also in other domestic tournaments like the Vijay Hazare One-day Trophy.
It will be interesting to see where Dravid plays him. Since there are already too many openers, he may be batted at No. 3 or No. 4.
K Gowtham: The off-spin bowling all-rounder from Karnataka has been a surprise and his selection, just like Gaikwad, has raised eyebrows.
Gowtham hasn’t done much of note in recent domestic tournaments, including the IPL.
The fact that he has been playing domestic cricket for a long time and has spent time at India team nets may have got him in the side.
Varun Chakravarthy: The Tamil Nadu spinner, known to bowl mystery spin, has been successful with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and has pushed the original protagonist of ‘mystery spin’ at KKR, Sunil Narine, to the background.
Chakravarthy picked 17 wickets in seven matches of IPL 2020. He also picked seven in seven games of IPL 2021. His economy has been impressive.
But fitness remains a massive drawback for him. He was selected to tour Australia but had to pull out because of injury which he did not reveal.
Chetan Sakariya: Picked ahead of his Saurashtra statemate, the more senior and acclaimed left-arm pacer Jaydev Unadkat, Sakariya’s story is inspirational.
The left-armer bowled a few good spells in domestic competitions, including IPL without being extraordinary.
But the fact that he is a left-armer, the need of the hour for India, may help him cement his place in India set-up. (Agencies)
