Statistical Analysis: Shikhar Dhawan and Virender Sehwag after their first 33 Tests

For Shikhar Dhawan, the ongoing Test series against England hasn't quite been as memorable as he would have hoped it would be. He has struggled in the difficult English conditions with the blade. Too often, he has looked good at the start, hitting perfectly timed cover drives and finding the gap well but, he has failed to convert the 20s and 30s to better scores, which was the case for him even during India's tour of England in 2014.

Dhawan has been receiving a lot of flak from the Indian supporters who are outraged that he has failed to deliver when the team needed him to. In the ongoing Test series, he has played 3 matches and in the 6 innings that he has batted so far, he has scored 158 runs at an average of 26.33. He and his fellow opener KL Rahul both have struggled to provide the team with a solid opening partnership.

Opening in Tests has been a source of debate in India for quite some time. After Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir, India haven't been able to field a settled opening pair. Murali Vijay did well in the past but was axed earlier in the series due to poor form. While Dhawan has a good record, his recent performances have stirred a lot of doubt.

Dhawan and Sehwag - how they compare

Speaking of Virender Sehwag, he sure was a class apart. With his fearless batting approach, sublime strokeplay and terrific timing, he was indeed a migraine for the opposition. In the 104 Test matches he played for India, he batted on 180 occasions and scored 8,586 runs consisting of 17 centuries, 32 half-centuries, 4 double tons and 2 magnificent triple centuries at an average of 49.34. Occasionally, he also contributed significantly with his traditional off-spin as he took 40 wickets in his Test career.

Shikhar Dhawan has played 33 Test matches so far in his career. His aggressive style of batting is also something he has in common with Sehwag. Since there is a huge gap in the Test cricket experience of these two explosive openers, we will compare the statistics of these two players after 33 Test matches for India.

Statistical comparison (33 Test matches each)

As the numbers reflect, Dhawan has played 2 more than innings than Sehwag and scored more at a better batting average. Sehwag has the upper hand in the number of half-centuries and tons. His 309 against Pakistan in the 1st Test match of India's tour of Pakistan in 2004 at Multan was a treat to watch.

Let's discuss their performances against England in England. Sehwag played 4 Tests in England back in 2002 and scored 237 runs in 6 innings that included a century and a half-century at an average of 39.5. In 2011, he played 3 matches in England and scored only 58 runs in 6 innings at a poor average of 9.66.

Dhawan featured in 3 Test matches in England back in 2014 and managed to score only 122 runs in 6 innings at an average of 20.33. In the ongoing Test series against England, he has played 3 matches so far and registered 158 runs in 6 innings at an average of 26.33.

Summing up, here are their Test performances in England:

England sure has been a tough test for both of them

Their individual performances are very similar on English soil with Virender Sehwag slightly better than Dhawan courtesy of a slightly better average, more runs and one more fifty and century.

Apart from hailing from Delhi and being batsmen of aggressive nature, poor performance record in England is also something that the two have in common. Nevertheless, there is no denying the fact that these two are exceptional performers and have done well on plenty of occasions to lead India towards victory.

Now the question is whether Dhawan can finish with as good a career as Sehwag managed. Only time will tell.