5 reasons why Shikhar Dhawan is the most underrated ODI batsman

Shikhar Dhawan recently scored a century in his 100th ODI and equalled the record of most centuries by an Indian after 100 ODIs, the other record holder being Virat Kohli. In fact, he is second on the list of most runs by a player after 100 ODIs with 4309 runs, after Hashim Amla (4808).

However, whenever we talk about the stalwarts of the current Indian batting line-up, it's the Rohits, the Kohlis and the Dhonis who garner all the attention, and we often miss out on Dhawan. So, here are 5 reasons why we think Shikhar Dhawan is the most underrated ODI batsman in this generation:

His modes of dismissal in ODIs

At times, Dhawan is too aggressive with the bat.

Dhawan is often accused of throwing up his wicket or not respecting the conditions. Out of his 95 dismissals in ODIs, 44 of them have come while he's been trying to slog or score aggressively. That is a very high percentage considering that he is an opener and needs to set up the platform for the middle-order.

However, here we need to understand his role in the team. He is a naturally aggressive player, and has been given a responsibility of giving the team a flying yet stable start. With Rohit Sharma at the other end, who takes his own sweet time to get going, all the responsibility of being the aggressor is with Dhawan.

So, while being aggressive, there will always be days when Dhawan's dismissal will leave us scratching our heads.

Nature of his centuries

Dhawan's off-side play is a delight to the eyes.

Shikhar has 13 ODI centuries to his name with the highest being 137 against South Africa in World Cup 2015. Despite his aggressive style of batting, he doesn't score those 'daddy' hundreds and often gives an impression that he gets satisfied after reaching the milestone.

With none of his hundreds being above 150, he certainly raises some eyebrows. On the other hand, Rohit has 5 scores of 150 and above including 3 double centuries.

Well, this is also a case of his role being given a preference. As cricket is a team sport, and Dhawan being a team man, tries to maximize the scoring rate knowing that there are enough stroke makers around him to capitalize if he gets out in the process.

Patches of inconsistency

Shikhar struggles to make an instant comeback when he is out-of-form.

Shikhar Dhawan, when in-form, always tries to prolong that period as he did in the CT 2017 and the Champions Trophy 2013. When in-form, he looks at his devastating best and changes the course of the match in few overs.

But at the same time he has the other patches as well, where he doesn't know where the next run would come from. He often has these periods where it almost seems as if his international career is over.

But to his credit, he also makes comebacks and seems stronger than ever after those patches. With a good away tour of South Africa, this issue seems to be put to rest.

The vicious circle of Dhawan's career

His Test record is rather poor in overseas conditions.

There's a pattern followed every time Gabbar gets dropped or makes a comeback to the side and we've traced it for you.

He does well in ODIs, then gets selected for an away Test tour, performs badly, loses his form. Then gets dropped from the side in all the formats. After that, the other opener gets injured or dropped and he makes a comeback in the ODI side, does well and the cycles goes on. This needs to stop.

The selectors have to realise that Dhawan in ODIs is as good as anybody. They need to distinguish between his Test career and his ODI career. Otherwise, I don't see this stopping any time soon.

His on-field character

His thigh-fives are often talk of the town.

Shikhar, being a Delhi boy, is as vivid a character as it gets. Be it the thigh-fives or his 'victory-gesture' celebration, and the best of the lot: the 'Gabbar' pose with the bat and the helmet in the hands, are the kind of celebrations that makes every kid on the streets follow his trends. But often these characteristics put Dhawan's dedication and seriousness towards the game in question.

India being a cricket loving country, has a huge following for the game. With the following, comes the critics. Dhawan's carefree attitude has always been put question by the critics for his failures.

To be fair, this is incorrect as everyone is different and have there different ways of expressing emotions. One shouldn't question any international cricketer's dedication towards the game as they have come through after facing rigorous competition at the domestic level.