World News – UK – India vs Australia: Shikhar and Switch to Overdrive

Shikhar Dhawan made his one-day debut in 2010, but it wasn’t until three years later when he made his Test debut against Australia that his international career took wings.

The fastest century of a Test debut, a spectacular 187 balls out of 174 at Mohali – 100 in 85 balls – is rated one of the best innings by an Indian batsman in his first Test.

The left-handed batsman quickly translated that success into the one-day arena and has since been part of some fascinating fights with Australia that formed an impressive top Indian order with Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. The three have puzzled Australian bowlers as teams have shared the booty, be it limited overs or testing, for the past seven years.

Dhawan’s testing career has rejuvenated, but the batsman, who turns 35 early next month, remains a force in white ball cricket. In the ODI series that kicks off in Sydney on Friday, there is a greater responsibility for the Delhi player. With Rohit absent, India will depend heavily on him to make strong starts and relieve Kohli.

Expectations from Dhawan are higher because he is also in shape. His latest record against Australia is stunning and he warmed up for the tour with an excellent show in the Indian Premier League.

In his last five ODIs against Australia, his sequence is 96, 74, 117, 12 and 143. At the beginning of the year he hit 74 and 96 in Mumbai and Rajkot; at the 2019 World Championships 117 at The Oval; In the preparatory series before the World Cup, there was a 143 in Mohali.

He traveled to Australia after his best IPL performance as the second highest run-getter with 618 runs and after becoming the first player to score two consecutive hundreds in the tournament.

Seven years later, Dhawan still rates his debut Test Hundred as a benchmark for flow, timing and control. In a warning to Australia, after his second hundredth in the IPL, he said he felt the same flow last month in the United Arab Emirates that scored hundreds (101 * against Chennai Super Kings and 106 * against Kings XI Punjab) in a row. “Same fluency as my test debut. . . He told the official broadcaster after the second hundred in Dubai.

At IPL he was in the zone – as athletes describe their absolute peak. He not only plays freely, but in a controlled manner. He also plans his innings beautifully.

In Australia, when Indian batsmen play shots, the difficult ball to adjust is the one that is thrown back lengthways. The additional jump on the wickets means that the ball hits the racket above the so-called « sweet spot ». . If you try to hit from the crease, you will take the ball higher on the racket and will not be able to time it. With pressures to play forced shots in ODIs, the balloon intended to be caught was a common type of discharge.

In a strong leg game, Rohit Sharma uses the speed to help the ball ascending across the field in the arc between midfield and fine leg. Dhawan counters by taking a few steps to get on the ricochet and hitting it on the wicket or over cover. So he took on the pace bowlers in the United Arab Emirates, where the courts in Dubai and Abu Dhabi surprisingly helped the express bowlers.

Kohli uses the same tactic. The three Australia were shown dazzling in the 2015-16 ODI series. India lost 4-1 but there was a batting show. Dhawan finished the race with a total of 287 runs with an average of 57. 40 with a hit rate of 100. 35; Rohit average 110. 11 (441 runs) and Kohli 76. 20 (381).

Dhawan is so important to India’s game plan against Australia that he is the only left-handed player on the line-up that does not include Rishabh Pant. In Rohit’s absence, the hosts will try to use the leg spinner Adam Zampa to put pressure on Kohli. Among the Australian bowlers, Zampa had the greatest success against Kohli in ODIs, dismissing the Indian No.. 3 five times. For the left-handed person, the Aussie is an easy meat that the ball spins inside of them as they can aim at their preferred leg area.

If the opener hits low, it can cancel out the zampa factor like it did at the 2019 World Cup. With Dhawan on the crease, Australia delayed turning on the leg spinner and tossing it as the fourth change, but the batsman lasted until the 37th. firmly. Zampa’s numbers are 6-0-50-0 when India piled 352. India won 36 races with Dhawan as man-of-the-match.

In an interview during the IPL, Dhawan explained his approach to beating. « I keep my attitude positive, don’t think the wicket is doing this, or about the terms.

I have a couple of tools as with strategies – if it’s a slow wicket, what I’ll do and get the bowler to do it too. And I play with courage and I don’t worry about getting out. It’s about being clear about what we need to achieve at different stages of the game. ”

As can be seen with IPL, he’s fitter than ever. For the Melbourne-based Dhawan, the key is to keep up the intensity by making sure he’s well rested so that he can reappear fresh with every game. “During the lockdown, I worked on my fitness mentally and physically. I enjoy being up front in the game. I move fast and run fast. In today’s cricket, you have to have that. otherwise you will be left behind. I make sure that I bring this to the table and be an asset to the team. ”

The Test Series is the main event of the summer in the Southern Hemisphere, but the importance of the Limited Overs Series will not be lost to players as it will set the tone for the Tour.

India national cricket team, Australian men’s cricket team, One Day International, test cricket, Virat Kohli