"My prayers are with them" - When a former India cricketer dedicated his Champions Trophy award to flood victims

Former India opener Shikhar Dhawan has an excellent record in the ICC Champions Trophy. In 10 innings across two editions, he scored 701 runs at an average of 77.88 and a strike rate of 101.59, with three centuries and three half-centuries. The former India batter was the leading run-getter in both the 2013 and the 2017 editions. The southpaw totaled 363 runs in 2013 and 338 runs in 2017.

Dhawan won the 'Golden Bat' award for being the top run-getter in the 2013 edition held in England, which India won by beating the hosts in a close final in Birmingham. While Dhawan won a lot of fans for his sensational batting performance in the Champions Trophy, he also won hearts with his gesture of dedicating his award to Uttarakhand flood victims.

"I would like to dedicate my performance to the people who have lost their lives back home due to the flood. My prayers are with them," Dhawan said after winning the Golden Bat award in 2013.

As per official figures, the 2013 Uttarakhand floods resulted in over 6,000 deaths. The floods were considered one of India's worst natural disasters.

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Shikhar Dhawan predicts the winner of Champions Trophy 2025

The 2025 edition of the Champions Trophy will be played in Pakistan and Dubai from February 19 to March 9. A total of eight teams are taking part in the ICC event, with India being clubbed in Group A with Pakistan, New Zealand and Bangladesh. Group B features Australia, South Africa, England and Afghanistan.

While there are a number of strong teams in both groups, Dhawan reckons that the Men in Blue have a great chance of clinching the trophy yet again: He told ICC:

"I can’t look past India. I am quite confident. They have a solid team and played very well against England in their recent ODI series.

"There are a lot of reasons to be optimistic for India. They have a very balanced side, especially with the bat, with a nice blend of experience and youth," the 39-year-old went on to add.

Dhawan had a wonderful record in the one-day format for India. In 167 matches, the left-handed batter scored 6,793 runs at an average of 44.11 and a strike rate of 91.35, with 17 hundreds and 39 half-centuries.