“This can be the end of your career” - Shikhar Dhawan’s massive revelation of teammate’s double hundred

Former India batter Shikhar Dhawan revealed that Ishan Kishan's historic double hundred against Bangladesh in 2022, convinced him that he may not be considered for the national team anymore. The left-handed opening batter faded away from the scene amid Shubman Gill and Ishan Kishan's rise in white-ball cricket, eventually announcing his retirement.

In the latter stages of his career, Dhawan played a key role as a senior member of the team, leading the second-string outfit on multiple occasions. Team India were on the lookout to settle on an opening combination for the 2023 ODI World Cup at that stage. Although the veteran was among the runs in 2022, scoring 688 runs in 22 matches at an average of 34.40, he could not keep up with the emerging youngsters.

Dhawan did not play a single international clash after the Bangladesh tour, as both Shubman Gill and Ishan Kishan went on to make it to the 2023 ODI World Cup squad. He only scored 18 runs during the three-match series, and was subsequently dropped for the home series against Sri Lanka and New Zealand in early 2023.

The opening batter admitted knowing that his time was up after Ishan Kishan's record-breaking knock in Chattogram, pushing the veteran further down the pecking order, and out of sight.

"I was scoring lots of 50s, I didn't score a 100 but I scored lots of 70s. When Ishan Kishan scored that 200, my instinct told me, alright boy, this can be the end of your career. An inner voice came to me. And that's what happened. Then I remember my friends came over to you know, give me that emotional support. They thought that I would be very down. But I was chilling, I was enjoying," Dhawan said in an interview with Hindustan Times.

Dhawan's red-ball career had fizzled out a long time ago following a poor tour of England in 2018. His T20I prospects had also diminished as a younger crop took over the side. He continued to feature in the Indian Premier League (IPL), leading the Punjab Kings (PBKS) in the three-year cycle from 2022 onwards. However, an injury-ravaged campaign in 2024 brought about an anticlimactic end to his career.

"No, it doesn't happen that way" - Shikhar Dhawan reveals no team member contacted him after he lost his spot

With a massive player pool in the build-up to the 2023 ODI World Cup, Dhawan was not considered again for selection by the team management. He had a decent IPL 2023 campaign, but Shubman Gill's imperious form and chemistry with Rohit Sharma made the youngster's case to be the long-term opening batter.

The former player revealed that no one contacted him after he was dropped from the national team.

"No, it doesn't happen that way. Maybe I spoke to Rahul (Dravid) Bhai. He messaged me. Everyone has their own journey and they are doing work or they are on tours, that's something very normal. We are used to it from the age of under 14, this is not the first time I am getting dropped or getting in," he added.

Following his retirement, Dhawan played in the Nepal Premier League for the Karnali Yaks, as well as the Legends League Cricket.