India's Shikhar Dhawan making up for lost time

India’s fearless opening batsman Shikhar Dhawan is doing the unthinkable at the Champions Trophy — making fans forget Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir.

Those three were the pillars of Indian batting till the recent past with Tendulkar the world’s leading scorer and century-maker in both Tests and one-day cricket.

Only Tendulkar among them has retired from one-day and Twenty20 cricket, but fans are already toasting the next generation of Indian cricketers led by Dhawan, Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja.

Dhawan, the 27-year-old left-hander from Delhi, has been the star of the eight-nation tournament with back-to-back centuries that eased the World Cup champions into the semi-finals.

The moustache-twirling opener smashed 114 off 94 balls, with 12 boundaries and a six, in the opening match against a South African attack admittedly missing the world’s premier fast bowler Dale Steyn.

Dhawan then plundered an unbeaten 102 off 107 balls against the West Indies in gloomy weather at the Oval on Tuesday, reaching three-figures with a six off Dwayne Bravo over third man.

It was his third successive international century, having made a spectacular 187 off 174 balls against Australia on his Test debut in Mohali in March.

“This boy is such an amazing batsman, I am sure he is here to stay,” India’s former World Cup-winning captain Kapil Dev told AFP.

“No one here in England is talking about the past… no one has so far asked about Sachin, Sehwag or Gambhir. Everyone is just talking about Shikhar Dhawan and his batting.

“That is a good sign for Indian cricket. Many young players are already taking over from the seniors. The change is going smoothly.”

Even rival players have been impressed. South African captain AB de Villiers, who has watched Dhawan closely in the Indian Premier League, said he was not surprised at his success.

“He has got the whole package and I am sure he’ll get better as his career goes along,” said de Villiers. “He is a good player.”

Dhawan’s talent was evident way back in 2004 during the under-19 World Cup in Bangladesh when he was named the player of the tournament after scoring 505 runs with three centuries.

Dhawan played first-class cricket for nine years under the shadow of his Delhi team-mates Sehwag and Gambhir, until luck finally smiled on him in March.

With both the senior pros dropped due to form, the selectors brought in Dhawan for the third Test against the Australians in Mohali to partner Murali Vijay at the top of the order.

Dhawan seized the opportunity by smashing the fastest Test century by a debutant — his 100 coming off just 85 balls — and went on to hit 33 boundaries and two sixes.

Unfortunately, he fractured his left hand while fielding in that match and missed the next Test on his home ground in Delhi which India won to complete a 4-0 whitewash.

Dhawan said his first-class experience — 5,866 runs in 82 matches with 17 centuries — stood him in good stead.

“I spent so many years in domestic cricket that I felt confident on my Test debut,” he said. “And words of enouragement from Sehwag, who asked me to stick to my strengths, helped a great deal.”

Asked by a reporter recently how he managed to remain cheerful at the crease, Dhawan said: “Enjoy watching my partner’s batting. Enjoy running between the wickets. Enjoy taking the pressure.”