"Well played Gabbar!"- Twitterati applauds Shikhar Dhawan for his brilliant innings of 98

Shikhar Dhawan has once again fallen agonizingly short of a well-deserved hundred as he was caught at short mid-wicket during the first ODI against England in Pune. Nevertheless, the Delhi-born player silenced his critics and showed why he is one of the best white-ball batsmen India have at the moment.

The likes of Prithvi Shaw and Devdutt Padikkal, who had set the stage on fire in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, were overlooked for the ODI series. Shikhar Dhawan was thus under some pressure as his place in the squad was questioned by many, despite having a career average of 45.66.

However, great players thrive under pressure instead of getting bogged down, and that is exactly what happened with the 35-year-old. He paced his innings wonderfully and scored a well-made 98 almost at a run-a-ball.

Fans on Twitter react to Shikhar Dhawan's superb show

Even though fans on Twitter were disappointed with Shikhar Dhawan missing out on what should have been his 18th ODI hundred, they hailed the Indian opener for his fantastic knock.

Here is what they had to say.

Shikhar Dhawan dismissed for 98, missed out a deserving hundred for just two runs - 98 runs from 106 balls including 11 fours and 2 sixes. Well played, Dhawan. pic.twitter.com/4CPyotl7V3

— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) March 23, 2021

The man with the coolest sounding name in cricket - Shikhar Dhawan - brings up his half century 🔥🇮🇳🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿#INDvENG

— Chloe-Amanda Bailey (@ChloeAmandaB) March 23, 2021

Shikhar Dhawan falls painfully short of his first century against England 😱He's dismissed for a 106-ball 98. What a knock 👏#INDveNG pic.twitter.com/6ILcgRlUiF

— Wisden India (@WisdenIndia) March 23, 2021

Oh bugger! Shikhar Dhawan misses his 100. Such a shame. He’s dismissed at 98. Hits it straight to Eoin Morgan. (Bowled by Stokes). 🇮🇳🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿#INDvENG

— Chloe-Amanda Bailey (@ChloeAmandaB) March 23, 2021

Shikhar Dhawan misses out on a fantastic ton, what an innings though by him. He goes for a brilliant 98. Deserved century the way he played, unlucky to miss out on 18th hundred.

— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) March 23, 2021

Shikhar Dhawan is dismissed for 98 as he smashes a pull straight to mid-wicket ☹️☹️A brilliant innings while it lasted, he held the innings together for #TeamIndia 👏Time for the middle order now to make the best use of the last few overs.🇮🇳 - 197/4 (38.3)#INDvENG

— Delhi Capitals (@DelhiCapitals) March 23, 2021

Shikhar Dhawan has dismissed 6 times in 90's in ODI.

— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) March 23, 2021

No matter whether it's Duck or 90s or Century or Drop catch, Shikhar Dhawan's smile is permanent.

— R A T N I S H (@LoyalSachinFan) March 23, 2021

Shikhar Dhawan missed his century 😔Well played GABBAR!!! 98(106) [11-4s 2-6s]#INDvENG | #ShikharDhawan | @SDhawan25 pic.twitter.com/eOXJMD8Hm7

— Shikhar The One (@ShikharTheOne) March 23, 2021

Shikhar Dhawan gone for 98 in #INDvsENG_2021 Me rn:- pic.twitter.com/Rgo5xcSrEO

— 々TANGENT々 (@pra_tea_k_2) March 23, 2021

Shikhar Dhawan is the greatest Indian ODI batsman in tournaments involving more than 2 nations. pic.twitter.com/CqWuPi16sa

— Vineet Saini (@vineets12) March 23, 2021

Well played, Shikhar Dhawan. He scored 98 runs from 106 balls including 11 Fours and 2 Sixes against England in first ODI match. Outstanding innings from the Gabbar Shikhar Dhawan. #INDvsENG pic.twitter.com/3sIjsKkMzH

— CricketMAN2 (@man4_cricket) March 23, 2021

Shikhar Dhawan after getting out: pic.twitter.com/ZCNg5rjnjS

— N!RAV🇮🇳 (@Niiravpatel) March 23, 2021

India were put into bat by England and it was not exactly a walk in the park for the openers, Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan. The duo had to see off the new-ball burst from the England pacers. Dhawan took his time to get his eye in and Rohit tried to up the ante after the completion of 10 overs.

However, after the dismissal of the swashbuckling right-hander, it was down to Shikhar Dhawan to take the initiative and make up for the deliveries he had consumed. Virat Kohli's run-a-ball innings coupled with Dhawan's aggression helped India shift gears in the middle overs.

Although Kohli, Shreyas Iyer and Dhawan lost their wickets in quick succession, the hosts will hope that KL Rahul and the Pandya brothers can take India close to the 300-run mark.