3 reasons why the West Indies series will be crucial for Shikhar Dhawan

Having gotten the better of England in both the T20Is as well as ODIs, Team India will now take on the West Indies in the Caribbean in another white-ball series. The Men in Blue will play ODIs and five T20Is in the West Indies from July 22 to August 7.

Veteran Indian opener Shikhar Dhawan has been named captain of the ODI side. The left-hander has been given the honor since regular captain Rohit Sharma was surprisingly rested for the ODI series, while KL Rahul is still unavailable as he is recovering from injury. Pacer Jasprit Bumrah and keeper-batter Rishabh Pant could have been other captaincy options, but they too have been given a break for the ODI matches.

Dhawan has a fantastic ODI record for India. He has played 152 matches in the 50-over format, amassing 6325 runs at an average of 45.17 with 17 hundreds and 35 fifties.

We look at three reasons why the ODIs against the Windies will be crucial for Dhawan’s future, keeping the 2023 World Cup in mind.

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#1 He looked completely out of sorts in England

Dhawan now represents India in only the ODI format. Pic: Getty Images

Having been dropped from the T20I squad following the series in Sri Lanka last year (where he was also the captain), Dhawan only features in the ODI format for India now. He has been out of reckoning in Tests since 2018.

With the growing popularity of the T20 version, countries are playing a very limited number of ODI matches. Hence, Dhawan is not seen in action a lot. He was recently part of the three-match ODI series in England. However, he looked totally out of sorts in all the games. The lack of match practice was clearly evident during the series.

The southpaw registered scores of 31*, nine and one in the three matches against England. He did feature in a century stand with Rohit in the opening game at The Oval, but it was clear that the Indian captain was shielding his out-of-touch partner.

Of course, it would be unfair to criticize the veteran batter for failing in one series. Remember, he scored two fifties in three ODIs in South Africa at the start of the year. However, a poor showing in the West Indies will definitely increase the pressure on the ODI specialist.

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#2 He is not getting any younger

Shikhar Dhawan will lead the ODI team in the West Indies. Pic: Getty Images

Apart from the fact that he plays only one format of the game for India, another concern for the think tank, specifically keeping the 50-over World Cup in mind, is the age factor. Dhawan will turn 37 in December this year and will be almost 38 when the World Cup will be played in India in October-November 2023.

If he can keep performing, then age will just be a number. However, if he fails in the West Indies as well, the age factor will definitely start coming into consideration.

The selectors and management will have to start discussing how many chances they need to give Dhawan to decide whether he remains in the plans for next year’s World Cup.

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#3 Growing competition for opening slot

Ishan Kishan has been impressive in T20Is. Pic: Getty Images

Another major reason why Dhawan must come good in the West Indies is because there is a lot of competition among the younger generation to grab his opening slot. If the selectors decide to look beyond the left-hander in the ODIs as well, KL Rahul can move to the top and join Rohit as his opening partner.

However, if India want Rahul to bat in the middle order, the likes of Ishan Kishan, Ruturaj Gaikwad and Shubman Gill could be considered. Ishan has already played 18 T20Is and three ODIs and has looked the part most times he has come in to bat.

If he does well in the West Indies, Kishan will definitely come into consideration for a place in the 50-over World Cup squad.

Gaikwad has not grabbed his chances in T20Is as of yet, but he has been a prolific scorer in domestic cricket in 50-over matches. Gill has not played an ODI since December 2020, but the fact that he has been chosen for the West Indies series proves he is still in contention.

The hard-hitting Deepak Hooda could be a joker in the pack. He impressed in the T20Is against Ireland, batting at the top of the order.

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