Birmingham: Opener Shikhar Dhawan was rightly named the player of the ICC Champions Trophy after his run spree for winners India.
The 27-year-old piled up 363 runs from India’s five matches, including two centuries and one half-century, for an average of 90.75 at a strike rate of 101.39.
Dhawan, who loves to twirl his moustache, was all smiles after the final. “I love this moment, I dreamt before the tournament that I would be the man of the tournament,” he said. “I feel blessed.”
Dhawan cracked 114 off 94 balls to help India beat South Africa by 26 runs in the tournament opener in Cardiff. He then went on to hit an unbeaten 102 off 107 balls with 10 fours and a six in India’s eight-wicket win over the West Indies — making him the first batsman in the history of the tournament to score back-to-back centuries.
He also hit a run-a-ball 48 in India’s eight-wicket final group match victory over Pakistan, and then scored a 92-ball 68 to ensure India recorded a comfortable eight-wicket win over Sri Lanka in the semi-final in Cardiff. He added a quickfire 31 from 24 balls in the final triumph over England on Sunday.
When asked about his form, Dhawan said: “I like bouncy tracks, they suit my game, and it went my way. It makes it more special for me that I was out of the team for two or three years. I knew I had that talent in me so I sorted out myself and I am scoring runs now.”
Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni feels that Dhawan has reaped the benefits of his determination to excel. “Shikhar just carried forward his confidence from the Test innings that he had played before coming here. He went into the IPL with an injury, but as soon as he became fit he was scoring freely, which I feel is very important.
“He is a slightly different character, but a fun-loving guy. At the same time, he backs himself to play those big strokes that he plays. So I think that really helped him, especially in this tournament. It’s something that he will carry forward. He’ll gain a lot of confidence out of the innings that he has played, especially over here. And that will really help the team more often than not get off to a good start.”
