Setback in South Africa helped me become a more mature player, says Shikhar Dhawan

Shikhar Dhawan struggled to score in South Africa but made a comeback in New Zealand

In a conversation to ESPNcricinfo recently, Shikhar Dhawan insisted that his poor form in South Africa helped him overcome this setback and mature as a player in New Zealand.

“From South Africa, when I didn’t score that much, I analysed my game that as a batsman, or as an opener, what shots I have to play at the start or what shots I shouldn’t play. Every pitch is different. We were playing in India a lot that time. Then when I went there, it was a setback. I wouldn’t say a failure, but the setback helped me a lot to become a more mature player,” Dhawan said.

“Then I realised, ‘Okay on these kinds of tracks I need to play these kind of shots. And I have to leave bouncers [alone] at the start because the bounce is different, and it is hard to keep the ball down.’ That’s what I did and brought those things into my practice. When I went to New Zealand that practice became my instinct, and that’s how I scored big runs there.”

Dhawan had a poor slump of form in South Africa, having scored just 76 runs in four Test innings. However, he recovered well and scored 215 runs against New Zealand in four innings which also included a century.

“One year [of him making a comeback] is over already,” Dhawan added. “It went so quickly. Good time always flies really fast. I celebrated on my own, the first anniversary with the Indian team. It’s a great feeling. We won so many series, and of course we saw a bit of down time too. But that’s how it is. You see ups and downs both. It is a beautiful journey. I am happy that I have been contributing to my side. I want to keep doing that, I want to keep improving as a batsman, and keep winning matches and series for my side.”

“I had a bit of a lean patch too. That lean patch made me stronger, and made me realise the areas I had to improve on. Made me a more mature player. That’s the best thing. It is a beautiful thing that I scored a lot of centuries and half-centuries. That’s every batsman’s dream: to score a lot of centuries and become the main man for the team.”

“I scored seven centuries in domestic cricket when I came to the Test side. I always believed it is a race that never ends. When Gautam bhai [Gautam Gambhir] and Viru bhai [Virender Sehwag] were playing, I was playing in Ranji. I always used to believe this race never ends. I should just keep performing well, and then my time will come. Then god blessed me with [a place in the] Indian team. I just focus on my game, whatever is in my hand – my hard work, my dedication, my commitment to my team – that’s all I do. And keep learning day by day.”

Dhawan’s debut Test in Mohali had surprised each of his critics who had written him off after he had scored the fastest Test century ever by a debutant.

“Every individual takes that responsibility. To be the main man. To take the responsibility to win the match for the team. We are youngsters, we are still learning a lot of cricket. It doesn’t happen overnight. You have to spend time out there and play a lot of matches to get experience. We have been doing well as a young unit. We won a lot of series, we lost a few too, but I personally feel we are doing really well. Out of these young players, there are going to be lots of future legends,” he concluded.