Asia Cup 2022: India needs Shikhar Dhawan’s consistency: Harbhajan Singh backs left-hander to make T20I comeback

Former Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh has put his weight behind Shikhar Dhawan to make a return to the T20I side. India lost against Sri Lanka on Tuesday by six wickets, almost ending their hopes of qualifying for the final of the ongoing Asia Cup 2022.

Meanwhile, Dhawan has been consistently performing in the IPL but has been ignored by the selectors for the national team. The left-hander had scored 460 runs in 14 matches for Punjab Kings in IPL 2022 but didn’t get a chance in the squad even in the absence of players like Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and KL Rahul.

Furthermore, Dhawan has improved his strike rate in the shortest format of the game. However, the left-hander had last played a T20I for India back in July 2021 against Sri Lanka.

In fact, it is well known that Dhawan has an immaculate record in the major ICC tournaments but he has been playing only one format in the last few years. The Turbanator urged the selectors to bring back Ishan Kishan and Dhawan into the squad.

“Bring back Ishan Kishan and Shikhar Dhawan. Shikhar has scored runs and he is consistent and the current Indian team needs that consistency. In the IPL, Dhawan scores decent runs every year. So, my opinion is to bring back players who have got runs and who know how to score runs,” Harbhajan was quoted as saying on Aaj Tak.

“Rohit, Virat, KL, and others are all good players. But we have to see who’s better for which format. What mistake has Dinesh Karthik made to get dropped? He made his way into the squad at the age of 37 after outstanding performances. Then he played well in the West Indies and other tours where he batted well,” he stated.

On the other hand, the former Indian spinner also showed his surprise after Dinesh Karthik was dropped after playing only two matches. Karthik faced only one ball against Pakistan in the first match while he didn’t get to bat against Hong Kong. Karthik was then dropped for the match against Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

“Most importantly, he is consistent and at his peak. Suddenly, he gets dropped from the playing XI after only one match in the Asia Cup. Honestly, it’s beyond my understanding. I don’t know if he is injured, I don’t know if he isn’t a team man. He is too good a player, he should be in your playing XI,” Harbhajan added.

India will next take on Afghanistan in the Super For contest.