Champions Trophy | VVS Laxman bats for Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan to open
VVS Laxman is impressed with Shikhar Dhawan’s return to form in IPL 2017 and has backed the left-hander and Rohit Sharma to open the batting at the Champions Trophy to be held in England and Wales in June, just as the duo had done when India won the previous edition in 2013.
Not only is Sunrisers Hyderabad mentor Laxman hugely pleased with the way his batsmen have performed so far, he also singled out Dhawan for special praise, given that the Delhi left-hander had endured a rough patch coming into the tournament.
Dhawan lost his place in the Indian team due to poor form and injuries, but the opener has looked good in the IPL and even smashed a match-winning 70 against Delhi Daredevils on Wednesday.
“Shikhar has been batting really well from the first match. Unfortunately, he has not been able to convert that into a big score but in
“I feel that Shikhar should open along with Rohit Sharma. If you remember, he had a big role to play in the last Champions Trophy win as well. This combination of Dhawan and Rohit is always lethal and puts the bowlers under tremendous pressure.”
Laxman feels 31-year-old Dhawan's performances in the ongoing IPL have enhanced his chances for an India recall. “So, I believe selectors will be watching him closely and I feel that the kind of rhythm he is in, he’s giving a lot of confidence to a lot of people. We, as a franchise, are also very pleased with the way Shikhar has been contributing to the Sunrisers’ success so far,” he said.
Dhawan isn’t the only Sunrisers player to have caught Laxman’s eye, the former India player is also equally impressed by Yuvraj Singh, who recently made a comeback to the Indian ODI side and struck an incredible 150 in Cuttack against England.
“Yeah, Yuvraj’s return at the international level has been a brilliant one. If you see, he performed really well in the domestic cricket, got a double hundred and earned his recall. Then came that phenomenal knock against England in Cuttack where he got a 150. I am very impressed with his work ethics, the amount of time he is spending on his fitness, working on his fielding and also focusing on his bowling. He is already thinking about the Champions Trophy because there is not much time between the end of the IPL and Champions Trophy," the Hyderabadi said.
