On Sunday, Shikhar Dhawan will celebrate his 36th birthday. Let’s take a look at the top five innings played by the Indian dashing opener on this occasion.
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Shikhar Dhawan is one of the most aggressive openers for Team India. Southpa has been a regular in the Indian dressing room for over a decade now. He went on to become the ‘Gabber’ at the 2004 Under-19 World Cup in Bangladesh, scoring a total of 505 with his stormy innings and receiving the Player of the Series award. Let’s take a look at the top five innings played by Gabbar.
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187 off 174 balls against Australia (2013, Mohali): Dhawan made his Test debut in red-ball cricket during the Aussies’ tour of India in 2013. Dhawan, who started batting alongside Murali Vijay, completed a century off 85 balls in his first Test. He hit 18 fours off 174 balls with 33 fours and two sixes. Did not bat during the second inning. But, Gabbar received the Player of the Match award for his outstanding performance. India won the Mohali Test by six wickets.
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114 off 94 balls against South Africa (2013, Cardiff): Dhawan once again impressed with his grand innings of 114 against South Africa in the 2013 Champions Trophy group stage in Cardiff. South Africa won the toss and invited India to bat first. Indian openers Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma added 127 for the first wicket. Rohit was eventually dismissed by Ryan McLaren in the 22nd over. But, Dhawan scored a century with his amazing performance. India scored 331/7 in 50 overs. India then outscored South Africa by 305 runs to win the match by 26 runs.
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190 off 168 balls against Sri Lanka (2017, Galle): Shikhar Dhawan’s highest score in the long format in 2017 against Sri Lanka in Galle. India beat Sri Lanka by 304 runs off 190 off 168 balls. The left-hander Gabbar had 31 boundaries in the innings. Spent almost four hours (235 minutes) at the crease.
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137 off 146 balls against South Africa (2015, Melbourne): India’s record against South Africa in the World Cup was not good. However, India broke the record by crushing the Proteas by 130 runs in a group stage match at the 2015 World Cup. Dhawan led India with 137 off 146 balls in the match. He won the Player of the Match trophy with this performance.
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132 * off 90 balls against Sri Lanka (2017, Dambulla): After thrashing Sri Lanka 3-0 in the Test series, India prevailed in the ODI series as well. Team India got off to a solid start in the ODIs by defeating the hosts by nine wickets. Batting first, Sri Lanka were all out for 216. India won by nine wickets with 127 balls to spare. Dhawan, who was unbeaten on 132 off 90 balls, was the best batsman for India.