After another disappointing end to an ICC tournament where India crashed out in the semi-finals of the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia, the focus has since switched to 50-over cricket. India will host the ODI World Cup in 2023 and the Men in Blue would look to bridge the gaps in their ODI squad in the 10 or so months remaining before the quadrennial tournament. India's preparations, however, haven't got off to a perfect start as they lost the three-match ODI series against New Zealand 1-0 and then suffered a tough 1-2 series defeat against Bangladesh.
The Indian team management and Rohit Sharma are looking to find answers to several questions, one of them being the opening combination with young star Shubman Gill and Ishan Kishan making a strong case for himself. Shikhar Dhawan is a proven match-winner for the Men in Blue in 50-over cricket and his numbers in ICC tournaments are fantastic.
Having said that, the southpaw has been struggling to find his best form of late and Gill's display in ODIs has only added to India's problem of plenty. Gill has made 687 runs in 15 ODIs for India so far with the help of one century and four half-centuries at a strike rate of 99.10. Ishan Kishan grabbed his opportunity with both hands and smashed the fastest double hundred in ODI cricket history on December 10 (Saturday).
With Gill and Kishan both making a strong case for themselves, Indian wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik has hinted that Dhawan might be sidelined in the future and his remarkable career might come to a 'sad end'.
"For Sri Lanka series, where does Dhawan stand? It is going to be interesting to see how they are going to leave out Ishan Kishan. Shubman Gill has been doing so well. If Rohit Sharma is available, somebody has to miss out. It could well be him (Dhawan). That could be a sad end to a glorious career. But some questions to answer for the new selectors," Karthik told Cricbuzz.
India's next 50-over assignment will be against Sri Lanka in January 2023. It would be interesting to see whether Dhawan keeps his place at the top or not.
