Published: Mar 19, 2016, 12:49 PM (IST)
Edited: Mar 19, 2016, 01:16 PM (IST)
The clash between India and Pakistan is easily the most important fixture for not only Team India but also for their fans. The loss in the opening game of their ICC World T20 2016 campaign against New Zealand will be forgotten in the coming days; however, the repercussions will not be the same if India end up losing their Super 10 stage match against their arch-rivals on Saturday. The iconic Eden Gardens has witnessed numerous moments in favour of India, the best possible being Rohit Sharma’s 264 against Sri Lanka in 2014. Nevertheless, it is yet to watch Team India defeat Pakistan in a limited-overs match and the upcoming fixture is their best chance to do so. FULL CRICKET SCORECARD: India vs Pakistan, ICC T20 World Cup 2016, Match 19 at Kolkata
It will require an all-round performance from the Men in Blue to get past Pakistan. Shikhar Dhawan, who has been on and off with his form of late, will play a crucial role and his inconsistency, is the only matter of worry in terms of batting for India.
Dhawan can be easily counted among India’s one of best current batsmen in the One-Day Internationals (ODIs) and Tests where he averages above 40. If the shortest format is talked about— despite having an image of being an explosive opener, a great timer of the ball, has got his basics strong and has always performed well in the IPL—Dhawan’s numbers in the Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is) have never justified his really potential in the T20s. Out of his last five T20I innings, three have been single digits.
Even if the point that he is a pure power-hitter is considered, even then the least that can be expected from an experienced player is consistency, which clearly Dhawan lacks at the moment. Had it been the beginning of his career, the form swings could have been accepted but now he has played enough in the shortest format of the game and it is high time he gets his basics rights, works on his technique and makes things work in his and India’s favour. It is really sad to watch a player with beautiful technique and consistency, Ajinkya Rahane, being made to warm benches just because Dhawan is a bigger hitter of the ball and is more likely to make a difference than Rahane at top of the order.
Dhawan has been managing to seal his spot in the side with a few performances here and there and those are enough to over shadow his numerous failures. Going back to India’s series Down Under where the two sides played a three-match T20I series, he was dismissed for just 5 in the opening game at Melbourne but came back with a power-hitting show at Adelaide, where he scored a 9-ball 26. The point here is, had he not thrown away his wicket there, it would have put lesser pressure on the next batsmen. It is absolutely unacceptable to expect the likes of Virat Kohli and Dhoni to finish off the match for India every single time. READ: India vs Pakistan, T20 World Cup 2016: Do India really need to change team composition after loss against New Zealand?
Dhawan booked his place for the next series against Sri Lanka at home after he scored close to a half-century against Australia in the final T20I at Sydney, which helped India win that game and white-wash the hosts in their den. After failing in the entire Asia Cup T20 2016, the Delhi batsman was retained in the playing XI for the World T20 due to the courtesy of his matching winning knock of 60 in the final of Asia against Bangladesh.
The opener has the ability to single-handedly take India home, provided he comes up with a powerful knock. This is the amount of impact the opener makes with his batting, an entire result could depend on his performance on the day. Which is why Dhawan invariably has had Dhoni’s backing. Moreover, the Indian skipper does not prefer altering the playing XI just after a couple of poor innings.
When Dhoni has been showing faith in Dhawan match-after-match despite the batsman’s failure on many occasions, it is Dhawan’s responsibility to justify that faith in the skipper before it gets too late. The last time India faced Pakistan, Dhawan was out with an injury. The match witnessed an exceptional spell of Mohammad Aamer that washed out a world class Indian batting line-up. With Aamer being at the top of his form, India surely need Dhawan to provide the required support from his end.
(Sakshi Gupta, a reporter with CricketCountry, is a sports fanatic whose mantra in life is “do only what you enjoy.” Her Twitter handle is @sakshi2929)
