India playing 11 from Shikhar Dhawan's Test debut in 2013 - where are they now?
One of India's finest openers, Shikhar Dhawan, bid farewell to all forms of cricket on Saturday (August 24). He played 269 games for the national team across all formats, scoring 24 centuries (17 ODIs and seven Tests). He held an impressive average of 40+ in Tests and ODIs.
Interestingly, Dhawan had a Test debut to remember in March 2013 against Australia in Mohali. Batting first, the visitors posted a formidable total of 408, with Mitchell Starc (99) as the top contributor. Ishant Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja picked three wickets apiece for India.
In response, the hosts got off to a sensational start with a 289-run stand between Dhawan (187) and Murali Vijay (153). Thereafter, Virat Kohli remained unbeaten on 67 as India were all-out for 499, taking a lead of 91 runs. Thus, the Aussie side could not be proficient under pressure and were all-out for 223, with Phillip Hughes (67) emerging as the major run-scorer. Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jadeja scalped three wickets each.
Then, Dhawan suffered a hand injury, rendering him unable to bat in the second innings. Nevertheless, Kohli (34) led India's successful chase of 133 with six wickets to spare.
On that note, let's take a look at what the playing XI of this Indian team are up to right now in life.
Top-order - Murali Vijay, Shikhar Dhawan, and Cheteshwar Pujara
Murali Vijay played a key role in India winning the Test match, scoring 153 and 26 runs in two innings. He has announced his retirement amd served as an analyst and commentator for Star Sports Tamil channel during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024.
Apart from scoring a whirlwind 187 off 174 in the first innings, Shikhar Dhawan hit the fastest-ever century off 85 balls. He seemed to be quite comfortable at the crease, largely coming through his limited-overs experience for India. The southpaw was last seen in action during IPL 2024, garnering 152 runs in five games for the Punjab Kings.
Cheteshwar Pujara returned with scores of one & 28 in this game. The second innings saw him replace Dhawan as an opener. He made his last Test appearance in June 2023 and plied his trade for Sussex in County Championship 2024. The veteran amassed over 500 runs in six innings at a prolific average of 62.62.
Middle-order - Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni, Ravindra Jadeja
The legendary Sachin Tendulkar had fine starts with contributions of 37 and 21 but could not convert it into a big knock. He is currently the mentor of the Mumbai Indians in IPL.
Another stalwart, Virat Kohli delivered an impressive performance in the first innings, with a knock of 67 off 129 balls. Then, he emerged as the top-scorer with 34 in the second innings. The 35-year-old recently won the T20 World Cup and retired from the shortest format. However, he is expected to remain a key player for India in Tests and ODIs.
The charismatic leader, MS Dhoni, captained the Indian team in this game. In the first innings, he was dismissed for four runs and remained unbeaten on 18 in the second essay. Dhoni was last seen playing for the Chennai Super Kings in IPL 2024, slamming 161 runs at an average of 53.67 and a strike rate of over 200.
Ravindra Jadeja was the most successful bowler for India in the game, scalping a total of six wickets. The talented all-rounder was a part of T20 World Cup 2024 winning team, where he also announced his retirement from the format. He is likely to represent the national team against Bangladesh in Tests next month.
Lower-order - Ravichandran Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ishant Sharma, Pragyan Ojha
Ravichandran Ashwin was impressive with four wickets in the fixture, while also dismissing the Aussies' top-scorer Hughes in the second innings. The veteran spinner recently represented the Rajasthan Royals in IPL 2024 and led the Dindigul Dragons to title victory in TNPL 2024.
Although he returned wicketless in the first innings, Bhuvneshwar Kumar took the first three wickets of Australia, which put pressure on the middle-order. The right-arm pacer took 11 wickets in 16 appearances for the SunRisers Hyderabad in IPL 2024. He has fallen out of favor of the Indian team and last featured in 2022.
Ishant Sharma took a total of three wickets in the game, while also taking wicket of Mitchell Starc in the first innings. He played nine games and took 10 wickets for the Delhi Capitals in IPL 2024. However, his last international appearance came in 2021.
Pragyan Ojha took four wickets in the game with his key scalp being Steve Smith, who scored 92 in the first innings. Later in the same year, he played his final Test game of his career. Ojha was part of the IPL Governing Council for three years until September 2023. He played in Legends League Cricket 2023 and was an analyst and commentator for JioCinema during IPL 2024.