“Decision was made half a day prior to the match” - Shikhar Dhawan recalls MS Dhoni’s masterstroke from 2013 Champions Trophy

Former India opener Shikhar Dhawan recently opened up on Rohit Sharma’s transition into an opener in the 2013 Champions Trophy. The 39-year-old shared how then-skipper MS Dhoni, known for his masterstrokes as leader, decided to open with Rohit within a day of the tournament. The southpaw added that he shared a great camaraderie with the current India skipper while opening for India for nearly 10 years.

Rohit kickstarted his journey as an opener from the first game against South Africa. The duo shared a 127-run partnership for the opening stand. Rohit, in particular, scored 65 off 81 balls, while Dhawan struck a century (114 off 94 deliveries).

Rohit finished the tournament amongst the leading run-getters for the Men in Blue, amassing 177 in five innings, finishing only behind Shikhar Dhawan (363). The duo has 5,148 runs in 93 innings while opening together for the Men in Blue in ODIs.

Shikhar Dhawan, an ambassador for the Champions Trophy 2025, told Star Sports (via The Times of India):

“This opening pair decision was made half a day prior to that match. At that time, I was also new, and I was in my own world. I had made a comeback and needed to perform well. But MS Dhoni took this decision and instructed Rohit to open.”

“So I didn't think much about it. I thought if Rohit opens, we'll enjoy batting together. We got such a great start in the first match. We were at 100 without losing a wicket. We didn't score 30-35 runs up to the 10th over because the wicket was seaming. But I never thought that our pair would be so massive and we would play together for 10 years,” he added.

MS Dhoni's decision to make Rohit an opener helped the Mumbai batter become one of the best in the business. The 37-year-old has three double centuries in ODIs. The right-hander recently became only fourth Indian batter to reach 11,000 runs in the format.

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“We are in a great situation” – Shikhar Dhawan lauds Rohit Sharma-led India’s performance in Champions Trophy 2025

Shikhar Dhawan further lauded Rohit Sharma and company for qualifying for the Champions Trophy 2025. The cricket-turned-expert said in the same interaction:

“As a leader, he has become mature, he knows when to be lenient and when to pull back. It's a fine balance and Rohit's bond with the boys is amazing. We are in a great situation.”

India beat Bangladesh and Pakistan by identical six wickets to qualify for the Champions Trophy 2025 semi-finals. They will play against New Zealand in their last group-stage match in Dubai on Sunday, March 2.