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Indian opening batsman Shikhar Dhawan has seen his stock rise meteorically in the last eight months or so. He was the Man of the Series at the Champions Trophy in England where his 363 runs helped India to the title. He then made a record-breaking 248 against South Africa A while representing India A on tour.
He has now been named the captain of the Sunrisers Hyderabad T20 team for the upcoming Karbon Smart Champions League T20 2013. In a media interview post his appointment, Dhawan displayed a very characteristic calm and composed demeanour, much like how he does on the pitch.
When asked about his leadership style, he replied with a smile, “I am cool and aggressive – aggressive from the inside, cool on the outside”.
Here is a brief transcript of the interview with a few inputs from Sunrisers coach Tom Moody as well.
On his appointment as captain
Shikhar Dhawan: I have captained the Delhi team for a while now but this is a new challenge. It’s an honour to lead a team like the Sunrisers because it has some big players, and I am really looking forward to it.
Tom Moody: We, as a franchise, are very fortunate to have a lot of capable leaders in our group – those who have led their domestic teams, like Shikhar, as well as international captains like Darren Sammy, Cameron White and Kumar Sangakkara, when he was with us. So, we were spoilt for choice. But we thought that given the circumstances where Kumar is unavailable for us (he will represent his domestic team, Kandurata Maroons, in CLT20 2013), this is an important stepping stone with regards to our relationship with Shikhar and plan for the future. For his cricketing skills, we all know what he is capable of doing. We also thought he has natural leadership qualities and it’s an area where he has shown interest in developing. I am excited at the prospect of working alongside him and forming a very important partnership going forward.
Captaincy style
Shikhar Dhawan: I am cool and aggressive – aggressive from inside and cool on the outside. I want my team to enjoy themselves on the field at the same time maintain the intensity of the game. We already have that at SRH
Rise of young Indian leaders like Dhawan, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma
Shikhar Dhawan: We guys have been playing the IPL for a long time and you tend to get mature with time. You also get new responsibilities along the way and I feel this is a good time for my team and me that I take over.
Tom Moody: I think, from India’s point of view, it’s great for the likes of Shikhar, Virat and Rohit to get the exposure that comes with leading their IPL teams. You never know how the game changes in a year’s time and it’s great to have a bunch of players who have the experience of working with international players and work under pressure in tournaments like the IPL and CLT20.
(Quotes courtesy clt20.com)
