“Good news that KL is back”- Shikhar Dhawan explains his stance on KL Rahul’s captaincy
“It is a very good news that KL is back and will be leading the side as well. He is one of the main players of the Indian team,” Dhawan noted.
India is set to face Zimbabwe in Harare in an ODI series, starting this Thursday. Initially, Shikhar Dhawan was announced as the captain for this tour with the squad announcement. However, midway through the preparations, the management went on to include KL Rahul in the squad. Additionally, it was announced that KL Rahul would replace Dhawan as the captain of the Indian side. Meanwhile, Dhawan took charge as the vice-captain for the ODI series.
KL Rahul is returning after a prolonged hiatus from the playing action due to injuries. Rahul injured himself ahead of the India Vs South Africa series which took place earlier this year in India. Following his surgery, when he looked fine to join the team, KL tested positive for COVID. Hence, inhibiting his inclusion in the team for the West Indies series. However, Rahul has recovered fully and the board gave him a green signal to participate in the India Vs Zimbabwe series. But the decision appeared delayed, as the squad and leader were already announced before the board’s nod to Rahul’s inclusion.
Shikhar Dhawan Clears His Stance On KL Rahul
💬💬 #TeamIndia vice-captain @SDhawan25 takes us through his mindset ahead of the #ZIMvIND ODI series. 👍 👍 pic.twitter.com/gvfyM5jVg9
— BCCI (@BCCI) August 16, 2022
Recently, Dhawan appeared for a pre-match conference where he addressed Rahul’s return to the side as Captain. “It is a very good news that KL is back and will be leading the side as well. He is one of the main players of this Indian team. It will be a good outing for him before the Asia Cup gets underway. I am sure he will gain a lot from this tour,” Dhawan noted.
Moreover, Shikhar Dhawan, the Vice-captain also expressed his willingness to assist the youngsters to polish their game. “I quite enjoy sharing my experience with the youngsters in the team. I first came here in 2014 (actually 2013), when Duncan Fletcher was the Indian coach. If they (youngsters) reach out to me for any suggestions, I am (always) there to answer them,” he said.
Despite suggestive speculations, the Indian team seems to be quite in the right sync with Rahul and Dhawan as the Captain and Vice-captain respectively.
The Zimbabwean side is in a good form coming from a clean sweep win over Bangladesh recently. Dhawan iterated the same when asked about his plans to face Zimbabwe. “It is good that they (Zimbabwe) won against Bangladesh. I am sure they are playing good cricket. This is good for us too. It will keep us on our toes and we would not take anything for granted. We are here to perform. Irrespective of the team and time, we should focus on getting the process right so that we get the right results,” Dhawan said.
