India playing 11 from Shikhar Dhawan's T20I debut - where are they now?
Stylish left-handed batter Shikhar Dhawan brought down curtains on an illustrious international and domestic career on Saturday (August 24). He made the announcement through a social media post where he expressed his gratitude for representing India for 13 years.
“It's important to turn the page to move forward in a story, and in life. That's why, I am announcing my retirement from international and domestic cricket. I've told myself to not feel sad that you won't play for India again, but feel happy that you played for the country,” Dhawan said in the retirement video.
Shikhar Dhawan was often considered the batter for ICC tournaments. Come the Champions Trophies and the World Cups, Dhawan would produce his A-game more often than not. He has scored 701 runs in 10 Champions Trophy games at a staggering average of 77.88 with three centuries and as many fifties.
Shikhar Dhawan has a great record in ODI World Cups as well, scoring 537 runs in 10 matches at an average of 53.70. He registered the highest individual score for an Indian on Test debut with an unbelievable 187 against Australia in Mohali back in 2013. Dhawan made his international debut in the ODI format back in 2010.
His T20I debut came a year later against the West Indies at Port of Spain. Having said that let us have a look at India’s playing XI from Shikhar Dhawan’s T20I debut and where they are now:
Openers: Parthiv Patel and Shikhar Dhawan
It was the duo of Parthiv Patel and Shikhar Dhawan who opened the innings for India during Shikhar Dhawan’s debut T20I. Parthiv scored a fluent 26 off 20 deliveries which included a couple of boundaries and a six.
Since his retirement from all forms of cricket, Parthiv worked as a talent scout for the Mumbai Indians. He can be seen doing commentary during the IPL. Meanwhile, Shikhar Dhawan has been out of the selection radar for a while now which might have prompted his decision to call it quits.
Dhawan who injured himself multiple times during the previous two editions of the IPL while captaining the Punjab Kings didn't clarify his IPL future during the retirement video. Dhawan recently hosted a talk show named ‘Dhawan Karenge’ featuring cricket players and Bollywood stars.
Batters and all-rounders: Virat Kohli, Subramaniam Badrinath, Suresh Raina, Rohit Sharma, Yusuf Pathan
The former Indian skipper Virat Kohli recently retired from T20Is after India’s World Cup win in June. Kohli scored just 14 runs during Shikhar Dhawan’s debut T20I but since then, he has dominated world cricket for over a decade. Virat broke his idol Sachin Tendulkar’s record for most ODI centuries (50) during the 2023 World Cup semi-final match against New Zealand
He is currently enjoying a break before India’s next Test assignment against Bangladesh. Meanwhile, Subramaniam Badrinath was the top scorer for India in the match with a 37 ball 43 which also earned him the Player of the Match.
Following his retirement, Badrinath can be seen doing Tamil commentary for Star Sports and also runs a YouTube channel named ‘Cric it with Badri’ with 309K followers.
Suresh Raina was dismissed for just 2 runs during Shikhar Dhawan’s debut T20I but he was a valuable asset for India in the limited-overs format. He was part of India’s World Cup-winning team in 2011 and was a top performer in the IPL.
Post-retirement from international cricket, Raina has played quite a few retired leagues and can be seen in the commentary box. He owns a restaurant ‘Raina Indian Restaurant’ in Amsterdam.
Rohit Sharma is currently the Indian captain in Tests and ODIs. He recently led the Men in Blue to their second T20 World Cup win in June, beating South Africa in the final. Rohit retired from T20Is immediately after the title win. He has been a prolific run scorer for India across formats. He scored 26 off 23 balls during Dhawan’s opening T20I.
He had his struggles early on in his career but what has transpired since the 2013 Champions Trophy has been a chapter cherished by every Indian cricket fanatic. Rohit is currently on a break before India’s next Test series against Bangladesh in September.
One of the most brutal strikers of the ball, Yusuf Pathan smashed a quickfire 15 off 6 deliveries during that match. Yusuf is a shy character off the field and unlike his younger brother Irfan, he is not seen too much on social media. Yusuf recently played an instrumental role in the India Champions winning the inaugural World Championship of Legends tournament.
Bowlers: Harbhajan Singh, Praveen Kumar, Ravichandran Ashwin, Munaf Patel
Harbhajan Singh was the pick of the bowlers during Shikhar Dhawan’s debut T20I against West Indies. He picked two wickets for 25 runs in his four-over spell, playing a pivotal role in India winning the match by 16 runs.
Harbhajan was recently part of the victorious India Champions squad which lifted the inaugural World Championship of Legends Trophy. He can be seen doing commentary occasionally and is pretty active on social media.
Praveen Kumar was an out-and-out swing bowler whose career couldn't quite progress in the manner he would have liked. Praveen finished with figures of 1/27 during the match against West Indies.
Since his retirement, Praveen Kumar has been hardly active on social media. During a recent podcast with ‘The Lallontop’, Praveen spoke his heart out revealing a lot of unheard stories about his life.
Ravichandran Ashwin has established himself as one of the finest off-spinners to have ever graced the game. He is currently the ninth leading wicket-taker in Tests, with 516 scalps in 100 Tests. Ashwin was part of the Indian World Cup side in 2023 but has been off the selection radar in white-ball cricket since then.
The 37-year-old Chennai off-spinner will look to make a massive impact in the two upcoming home Test series against Bangladesh and New Zealand.
Munaf Patel was part of India’s World Cup-winning squad in 2011. His leg cutter to Abdul Razzaq in the semi-final clash remains fresh in every Indian cricket lover’s mind. He announced his retirement from international cricket in 2018. Munaf played for the Kandy Tuskers in the 2020 Lanka Premier League. He is currently working as the bowling coach for the Baroda Cricket Association (BCA).