Shikhar Dhawan: India has reached the semifinals of the ongoing Champions Trophy by defeating Bangladesh and Pakistan in back-to-back games. The Rohit Sharma-led men in the blue brigade so far have displayed an all-round performance. Virat Kohli’s 51st ODI ton has become a talking point now. But among all these performances, a former cricketer attracted the eyes of cricket lovers. The former cricketer is none other than Shikhar Dhawan.
Why Shikhar was there?
Shikhar, who has announced his retirement, was present at the Champions Trophy 2025 as a special guest. But why, ICC invited the Indian former batter as their special guest? Let’s find out the answer. If we have to find the answer, then we need to look back at the year 2013. At that time, India was looking for a new pair of opening batsman.
Virendra Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Gautam Gambhir were at their final stages at their respective careers. So, Team India was looking for someone who could kick off the innings. It was the time when Shikhar Dhawan stepped into the field with a young Rohit Sharma. Rohit-Shikhar duo took no time to cement their spots in the line-up. Shikhar, who was know for his courageous batting, created records in the history of the Champions Trophy.
Dhawan’s performance at the Champions Trophy
Whithout Dhawan, the history of the CT is incomplete. The Indian opener scored a whopping 363 runs in the Champions Trophy 2013 and won the golden bat as the highest run scorer of the tournament. This time India emerged as the champion. The 2017 Champions Trophy was also marked by the brilliance of Shikhar Dhawan.
After 2013, Dhawan again won golden bat award as the highest run scorer of the tournament by scoring 338 runs. So, there is no doubt why ICC invited Shikhar Dhawan as their special guest for this year’s Champions Trophy.