"I still feel the Indian team needs him" - Rajkumar Sharma on Shikhar Dhawan not being considered for India's T20I side

Virat Kohli's childhood coach Rajkumar Sharma has questioned the reported decision not to consider Shikhar Dhawan for the Indian T20I side.

Dhawan has been left out of the 18-member Indian squad for the upcoming T20I series against South Africa. Rahul Dravid has also reportedly conveyed to him that he is no longer in the Indian team's scheme of things for the shortest format of the game.

During a discussion on India News, Sharma was asked about the development. He responded:

"I am slightly surprised. I still feel the Indian team needs him [Dhawan], he is an opening batter and gives the left-right combination. And the way he bats, his strike rate is always good. If you give him a role, he definitely works on it because he is a good student of the game and a good team man."

The former Ranji cricketer added that Dhawan's experience could help the Indian team's cause in the T20 World Cup later this year. Sharma elaborated:

"The World Cup is around the corner and we need his experience there and he is a batter who when he plays, wins you the match. I was expecting that he will be there in the World Cup as well."

Team India are likely to go in with the opening combination of Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul at the T20 World Cup in Australia. With the likes of Ishan Kishan and Ruturaj Gaikwad also waiting in the wings, it might be difficult to accommodate Dhawan in the squad.

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"Age is just a number" - Rajkumar Sharma on Shikhar Dhawan being ignored

Shikhar Dhawan last played a T20I for India in July 2021

Rajkumar Sharma pointed out that age cannot be a criterion for a player's exclusion. He explained:

"If we talk about Shikhar Dhawan, I feel he might still be one of the fittest players, his fielding is very good, his performances have been very good in batting also. Age is just a number."

The current Delhi team coach concluded by stating that there are no exceptional players waiting in the wings either who can take Shikhar Dhawan's place. Sharma observed:

"If a player is performing well for you along with experience, he is more useful, unless you have got a replacement who has done exceptionally well, that you have to surely keep that player and the other player is out of form. I didn't see anything like that with Shikhar. He has looked in fantastic form, just going by his age is not correct."

Dhawan had a decent IPL 2022 campaign for the Punjab Kings (PBKS), amassing 460 runs at an average of 38.33. However, his slightly below-par strike rate of 122.66 and the lack of available places at the top of the order in the Indian T20I side might have worked against him.

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