Himachal Pradesh skipper Rishi Dhawan has once again stamped his authority in the domestic circuit through his all-round show as they drubbed Odisha in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy 2021-22.
Batting first, Himachal rode on Rishi’s unbeaten 91 to set up a mammoth total of 360. Rishi doubled it with an impressive spell of three wickets for 51 runs. In reply, Odisha ran out of steam and were bowled out to 297 while chasing such a competitive target.
Rishi’s quickfire unbeaten knock came off in mere 58 balls which was decorated with three big ones and 10 boundaries. He came to bat in the 29th over of the innings when the score was 154/3. With Nikhil Gangta firing from the other end, the two shared a 111-run stand in just 13 overs. Rishi did the bulk of the scoring in the death overs with valuable contributions from the lower-middle order batters.
The other batters who dazzled for Himachal beside their captain were Shubham Arora who smashed 69 off 88 deliveries. Prashant Chopra also contributed with a sedate 64 off 73 balls. Nikhil’s stylish 81 came off 57 deliveries. The quickfire knock was studded with two sixes and 11 fours.
In bowling, Mayank Dagar stood tall with a splendid spell of six for 59 for the winners where he got the scalps of Anurag Sarangi (66 off 47), Govinda Podar (11), Rajesh Dhuper (34), Abhishek Raut (7), Bikash Rout (2) and Sunil Roul (0). Odisha skipper Subhranshu Senapati was the lone performer for his side with 82 off 76 balls.
Himachal Pradesh is currently topping the chart in the Elite Group ‘A’ of Vijay Hazare Trophy.
Domestic and IPL performances
This is not the first time, the 31-year-old from Mandi has hogged limelight in the domestic cricket. He first made the headlines as a 16-year-old in 2006, when he cracked 340 runs for Himachal in an Under-19 match against Railways in the Cooch Behar Trophy. Three years later, he was fast-tracked into the first-class setup, where his bowling performances overshadowed his batting.
Rishi made his International debut against Australia in January 17, 2016. His IPL career also came to the fore when Punjab Kings (rechristened from Kings XI Punjab) signed him for INR 3 crores in 2014. His performances have been steady, if not spectacular, having been used mainly as a stop-gap bowling option.
